Ties That Bind
by Cyberweasel89
Summary: They say that the bond between a brother and sister is stronger than any chain. When Oliver, James Carpenter's son, left Vault 101... he took his older sister Amanda with him. Novelization of a mod of the same name as well as the Phalanx mod.
1. Prologue: Knock Knock

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fallout. Fallout belongs to Bethesda, who purchased the rights from Black Isle.

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**Rating:** M

**Genre:** Adventure, Action, Sci-Fi, Post-Apocalyptic, Romance

**Summary:** They say that the bond between a brother and sister is stronger than any chain. When Oliver, James Carpenter's son, left Vault 101... he took his older sister Amanda with him.

**Novelization:** Mods "Ties That Bind," "FOOK2," and "Phalanx."

**Inspiration:** Official AU of Nave Ninja's fanfic "The Legend of the Wandering Pair from Vault 101," used with his permission and blessing.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Fallout 3

Ties That Bind

By _Cyberweasel89_

**Prologue:** Knock Knock

**XXXXXXXXXX**

_War... War never changes._

_Since the dawn of human kind, when our ancestors first discovered the killing power of rock and bone, blood has been spilled in the name of everything. From God, to justice, to simple psychotic rage._

_In the year 2077, after millennia of armed conflict, the destructive nature of man could sustain itself no longer. The world was plunged into an abyss of nuclear fire and radiation._

_But it was not, as some had predicted, the end of the world. Instead, the apocalypse was simply the prologue to another bloody chapter of human history. For man had succeeded in destroying the world... But war... War never changes._

_In the early days, thousands were spared the horrors of the holocaust by taking refuge in enormous underground shelters... known as vaults. But when they emerged, they had only the hell of the wastes to greet them._

_All except those in Vault 101. For on that fateful day, when fire rained from the sky, the giant steel door of Vault 101 slid closed, and never reopened._

_It is here _you_ were born. It is here you will die. Because in Vault 101... no one ever enters... and no one... ever leaves._

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"And so, that concludes the yearly viewing of the Vault 101 Introduction Movie. Any questions?"

Butch raised his hand. "Yes, Mr. DeLoria? What is your most enlightening question?" Mr. Brotch said with a sigh.

"Yeah. Do you really think we'd have any questions after seein' that movie for the past nineteen years of our lives?"

Laughter throughout the class. Except Amata and Oliver, his favorite students... except... that was because Oliver was sleeping. "Mr. Carpenter? Sleeping in class again, are you?"

Even after slamming his hand on the boy's desk, Mr. Brotch couldn't wake him up. The teacher resorted to tipping over his chair. That worked. The boy scrambled to his feet, stretching his arms and yawning, then pausing to adjust his Vault jumpsuit. He didn't seem to notice where he was...

"Mr. Carpenter..." that got his attention. The young man turned to look at his teacher, hands in his pockets as he gave him a blank stare. "If I wasn't fully aware of your reasons for sleeping in class, I'd give you detention for doing it so much. Just be grateful your father and I are such good friends."

"Sorry..."

The voice that spoke was so quiet, so soft, and so mellow in tone. In fact, Brotch was surprised the boy had spoken at all. He rarely did... Usually, his sister spoke for him.

"Okay, class dismissed."

"Finally!" Butch shouted.

As everyone filed out of their seats, Amata ran up to the boy. "Hey, Ollie!" She slowed down to walk next to him. "Want to stop by the diner for some Nuka-Cola?"

Mmmm... Nuka-Cola. His only vice. The boy nodded.

As he walked, Amata was telling him a story of running into Christine Kendall in the hall earlier. Oliver only half listened. His thoughts were turning to days past... Important events in his life that stood out, for some reason...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

_Nineteen years ago..._

They say that when you're born, you're crying and everyone around you is smiling. They also say that when you die, you should be smiling, and everyone around you should be crying.

Well, like everyone, a healthy baby was born crying, covered in his mother's inner care. The first thing he saw was an Asian woman, probably in her later twenties, wearing horn-rimmed glasses and a white lab coat. The woman reached forward with both arms, pulling him from the warmth of his mother's womb and cradling him in her to her chest like an aunt would her newborn niece or nephew. A man stepped forward next, Caucasian and possibly in his early thirties, a medical mask over his face and also wearing a white lab coat.

"Let's see... Are you a boy or a girl?" he wondered aloud. A brief examination of the obvious areas brought an answer to this question.

"It's a boy? A boy! We've got a son, Catherine! A beautiful, healthy baby boy!" the man exclaimed, overjoyed.

"Oh... Oh James..." a woman's voice spoke up, but it wasn't the woman currently holding him. It was the woman he'd just emerged from, the one who brought him to planet Earth. It was an African-American woman with short, messy hair snow white in color, dressed in a patient gown and gazing upon her new child with adoring hazel eyes. "We did it... A son... Our beautiful son..."

"You've got a bright future ahead of you, kiddo. I'm sure of it..." the man, his father James, said to the newborn. You could hardly tell the newborn was of mixed race, he was so pale, though he seemed to have his mother's hazel eyes and white hair.

The man leaned in close to the baby in the bespectacled woman's arms, reaching his hand forward so the boy could suck on his finger.

"Looks at you! Look at you... Hi, there! I'm your daddy, little guy. Daddy." The baby let go of his father's finger and cooed in delight at the sight of him, a lifelong bond forming almost immediately. "You're going to need a name, aren't you?" his father continued. "Your mother and I have been talking. What do you think about... Oliver? That's a good name. Don't you think? Fits your perfectly." The newly-christened Oliver cooed in delight once again, happy with his new name.

"You're going to look a lot like your dad." James said, smiling at his new son from beneath his medical mask. He reached into the Asian woman's arms and gently took the newborn from her, cradling him in his own arms. He turned to show Catherine their new miracle. "See that, Catherine?"

"Ohhh... Very strapping... Ha ha ha..." Cathering chuckled tiredly, James handing the bundle of joy to his wife.

"It's a big world out there, kiddo, full of all sorts of people. What about you? What kind of person are you going to be?" James wondered aloud. "You're just-"

"James?" Catherine interrupted.

"Catherine?" The new father turned to his wife in alarm.

"James..." The medical instruments around her began to beep.

"Catherine?!" James cried in alarm.

"Something's..." The beeping got faster.

"She's in cardiac arrest! Start compressions!"

"Something's..."

"Get the baby out of here! Move. Move!"

The bespectacled woman hurriedly took the happy baby from his mother's arms, the newborn wailing at the sudden change.

"One, one thousand. Two, one thousand... Come on!" James counted, pushing down on his wife's chest with both hands as the woman with the glasses hurried Oliver out of the room.

"Hang on, Catherine! Hang on..." he heard his father say.

The last thing he remembered before crying himself to sleep in the woman's arms was a loud, long beep that seemed to go on forever from the other room.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

_One year later..._

"Don't look straight into the light, son. You'll hurt your eyes. It's just something you get used to down here."

One year old, and Oliver found himself standing in a room he knew very well, as he had explored it on his hands and knees many times. Only now would he explore it on his own two feet for the first time, standing across the room from his playpen, where his father stood, gesturing him over.

"Come on over here, son. Come on! Walk to Daddy!" James called to him, bending over and waving.

To his left was a girl only three years older, roughly four years old, in a child's blue jumpsuit. It was Oliver's older sister, Amanda. She sat on a nearby mat, playing with her teddy bear, Mr. Patches.

Uneasily bringing himself onto two bare feet, baby Oliver teetered and stumbled his way across the room and into the playpen. He almost fell several times, but finally made the gauntlet before plopping down in front of his father on his diapered rear.

"There you go!" his father exclaimed, stooping lower and smiling at his son. "My goodness! Just a year old, and already walking like a pro. Your mother would have been so proud."

Oliver giggled with a toothless mouth and clapped his tiny hands in joy.

James turned and walked past his son, out of the play pen and turning to close the gate.

"Listen, kiddo. I know you don't like it when Daddy leaves you alone, but I need you to take care of yourself for a minute. You just stay here while Daddy runs to his office. You'll be okay, son. I'll be back in a bit."

Watching his father leave out the big metal door across from the pen, and his older sister leave with him, Oliver looked about the room, wondering with his infant mind what trouble he could get into.

Standing up, he pattered over to the playpen gate, long having figured out how to open it, and stepped outside and into the room. Granted, he still couldn't open the door, but it was a much bigger playing area than his pen.

Having idolized his father, Oliver often imitated him in any way he could. That included picking up books and holding them in his lap, turning the pages. He couldn't read yet, but his father did it all the time, and at his age he hadn't grasped the meaning of leafing through a book yet. But he walked over to his toy chest, where his favorite book lie sitting on the ground.

Titled 'You're SPECIAL,' the one-year old plopped down on the carpet and opened the book to the first page.

'S is for Strength, and that means I am strong! I can carry more toys and swing stuff all day long!'

Hmm... That muscled Vault Boy on the other page was looking pretty boring. Standing up, Oliver reached into his toy trunk and removed a page of star-shaped stickers. Giggling to himself, he placed three of them just under the muscled Vault Boy, then turned the page.

'P is for Perception, a long funny word! It means what I tasted, smelled, saw, and heard!'

Oliver promptly placed eight of the stickers under this image of Vault Boy surrounded by pictures representing the five senses.

"E is for Endurance, and that's how long I can play! I'm always really healthy, and have energy all day!"

Removing three stickers, Oliver placed them under the jump-roping Vault Boy before turning the page.

'C is for Charisma, it's why people think I'm great! I make my friends all laugh and smile, and never want to hate!"

Oliver sucked on his thumb for a moment, then grabbed five stickers. His saliva-covered hand, however, picked up an additional five, accidentally depositing a total of ten under the image of Vault Boy pointing at the reader and winking. He turned the page after wiping his hand on his diaper.

'I is for Intelligence, it means I'm really smart! I use my brain for lots of stuff, like science, math, and art!"

For once, he actually found this image of Vault Boy rather amusing. He was sitting on a stack of giant books, and reading another giant book in his hands. Feeling this page deserved more stickers as a reward, Oliver placed a total of ten under Vault Boy, then turned the page again.

'A is for Agility, that's how I get around! I move real fast and easy, and I never make a sound!"

Grabbing a handful of stickers, Oliver placed a total of six under the image of Vault Boy balancing on a bottle, smiling to himself as he turned the page once more.

"L is for luck, and it's simple, you see! It means that good things always happen to me!"

Oliver grabbed a handful of stickers, but only managed to get three on the space under Vault Boy walking by a black cat before the door to the room slid open, the baby dropping the book and handful of stickers to turn and see his caretaker return to the room.

"Ha ha ha!" his father chuckled. "You're quite the little explorer, aren't you? Serves me right for trying to pen you in!"

The baby gazed up at his father with big, hazel eyes, a toothless smile on his face at the sight of him again. He stood up and pattered over to stand in front of James, hugging his leg and cooing at him.

James bent down and picked his baby son up, holding him upright in his arm. "Come on over here. I want to show you something."

He brought Oliver to a small table between the door and his toy trunk, a framed piece of paper with words he couldn't read yet on it.

"See that? It was your mother's favorite passage. It's from the Bible. Revelation Twenty-One Six."

Oliver gazed at the fancy lettering with awe, looking up at his father as he began to recite the passage.

"I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely."

Even at only a year old, Oliver felt a shiver run up his spine from hearing his father recite it.

James turned away from the framed quote and back to the baby in his arms. "She always loved that."

Oliver cooed in amazement, reaching over to touch his father's nose.

"All right. Come on." James began, standing and turning to carry Oliver out of the room. "Let's go see if your little friend Amata wants to play..."

Oliver squealed in delight, right in his father's ear. He loved playing with Amata, even if the girl's father was pretty scary. Sighing, he rested his head on his father's shoulder and closed his eyes, just to shield his vision from the bright lights of the hallways.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

_Nine years later..._

He wasn't sure why he was led out of his room and down the hall with his eyes closed. His father just said that it was a surprise. Trusting his father, Oliver complied, feeling his father's hand on his shoulder as he led him down the halls of Vault 101 with his hazel eyes closed. Conveniently, he had also forgotten what day it was to day. He had been right in the middle of a particularly engrossing issue of Today's Physician when his father popped in and told him to hurry along with him.

"Okay, pal! Open your eyes!"

He did, to find the room dark. A blinding white filled his eyes as the lights were flipped on. Horns went off, people were clapping, and multiple people were shouting "Happy birthday!" all at once. Oh, right! It was his birthday today! The tenth one!

"Stanley, ya turned the lights on too fast! Ya blinded the poor kid!" he heard Officer Gomez chastise as he attempted to rub his eyes to clear his vision. When he could see again, it seemed the diner had been set up for his tenth birthday party, with 'Happy Birthday!' banners, streamers, balloons, and people wearing party hats. Directly in front of him was his best friend Amata, Officer Gomez, and Sparky. His father was just behind him, and placed a party hat on his head with the stealth of a ninja.

"Can you believe it? He's growing up so fast." he heard Mrs. Palmer say.

"Happy birthday, pal! I can't believe you're already ten. I'm so proud of you. If only your mother-"

His father was interrupted as Alphonse Almodovar, the Overseer, walked up with something held behind his back. Oliver held his ground, looking up at the tall man with a blank expression.

"Congratulations, young man! I don't have to tell you how special this day is, do I?" the Overseer greeted. Not at all with the warmth one usually should use when speaking to a ten-year-old boy. "Down here in Vault 101, when you turn ten, well, you're ready to take on your first vault responsibilities. So here you are!" His hand emerged from behind his back, revealing the object he had been hiding to be a Pip-Boy 3000. "As Overseer, I present to you your very own Pip-Boy 3000. Get used to it." He added the last part a bit bitterly.

The Overseer held the personal information processor out for him to take, but Oliver just eyed the device before him. Sighing, as if he really didn't want to put up with this, he tossed the device to his father, who helped affix it to his rather small wrist. Oliver looked down at the screen, seeing a readout of his vitals. Three buttons switched to other modes of viewing, like data storage. Two dials on the side allowed scrolling horizontally to other sections in each particular button's category, and vertically, for scrolling through lists of data on each page.

"You'll be getting your first work assignment tomorrow." The Overseer explained. He started chuckling heartily, but stopped when he saw the boy was giving him a smile instead of showing signs of dread. He was already studying his father's medical and science texts. Maybe now he could actually assist Stanley with any computer problems and help his father in the clinic. Why wouldn't he be looking forward to it? He was getting bored with reading comic books.

"Enjoy you're party. You're only ten once, so have fun." His father urged him. He walked off to sit at the diner counter with Stanley, Sparky close on his heel, leaving him standing alone. Amata, his best friend, was the first to approach him.

"Happy birthday! We really surprised you, didn't we?" She giggled. "Your dad was afraid you were onto us. But I told him not to worry. You're _so_ easy to fool. You like it, right?"

Oliver just smiled, giving Amata a nod. Oliver was a quiet boy, rarely one to waste words or speak unnecessarily. Luckily, Amata could just tell that her best friend was truly was thankful for the time and effort she went through to set everything up.

"You're welcome, then. But really, your dad did most of it. I just helped with the decorations and stuff. Hey, I betcha can't guess what I got ya for your birthday! Go on, guess!"

The boy just shrugged.

"Ha! I knew I'd surprise you. Who's your favorite barbarian? That's right, Grognak! Issue fourteen, and with no missing pages." She pulled the comic book out from behind her back. A small smile came to Oliver's face, reaching forward and accepting the comic book from his best friend's hands, giving Amata a thumbs up as thanks. "I found this in a box of my father's old things, believe it or not. Imagine him reading comic books! I guess everybody was ten once." The boy released a silent chuckle at that, nodding. "Well, I'd better let you get back to _mingling_ with your guests. We'll talk later, okay? Happy birthday."

The girl didn't wait for Oliver's response. That was the thing with Amata. Oliver wasn't one to talk much, but he didn't really need to with his best friend. The girl tended to know what he wanted to say without saying it. Maybe that's why they became such good friends. They were both social outcasts. The quiet, bookworm boy and the Overseer's daughter. Both picked on, both shunned. But together, they had a friend in each other.

Oliver turned around and opened the comic book he received, leafing through the first few pages, but felt a tap on his shoulder that made him jump.

"Happy birthday, little brother!"

Oliver whirled around to see his sister standing there, something held behind her back and a smile on her face. Three years older than Oliver, Amanda was thirteen, and already was filling out her Vault 101 jumpsuit a little too much due to an early puberty, the zipper straining to contain her chest. Unlike her little brother, Amanda took a bit more after their father, with black hair and brown eyes, though she also was rather pale for being biracial, just not as pale as her little brother. Her hair was cut short in a pixie style, though she had told Oliver she was intending to grow it out. Unlike Oliver's keen interest in scientific and medicinal pursuits, Amanda had developed an early interest in mechanics and engineering, and after spending most of her childhood fixing and hanging with the Vault's resident maintenance Mr. Handy, had developed a bit of Andy's accent, though Andy said hers was more Australian than British.

Like Amata, Amanda tended to be able to tell what Oliver wanted to say without actually saying it, so his quirked eyebrow was all she needed in response.

"Yes, I know I'm grounded. But I wouldn't miss your tenth birthday party, silly!"

Oliver shrugged at that, then lifted his arm to show his sister the Pip-Boy he just received.

"Yep, you finally got your Pip-Boy, little brother. Next up, weekly chores, double classes, and keeping your Vault-Tec Daily up-to-date."

The boy pouted at that.

"Oh, there are good things, of course. But I'll let you discover those on your own."

Oliver smiled at that, a small smile, but all of his smiles were small.

"Here, I got you a present." She pulled it out from behind her back to show her little brother. "It's my old teddy bear, Mr. Patches. He's... He's all yours now."

She added the last part with an emotional softness in her voice, handing the patchwork teddy bear to her brother, he held it the opposite hand as his comic book.

Oliver looked at the teddy bear's little button eyes, long having been used to replace his original eyes, and could tell that this present was very hard for his sister to give up. Looking at Amanda, her gaze at the ground, Oliver reached forward and placed his hand on her shoulder, making her look up. He smiled at her, a small that seemed to affect his eyes as well.

"Thank you..."

Wow... He actually spoke! That was a huge accomplishment for Amanda, to actually get her brother to speak, and it let her know that he truly knew what this gift meant. The girl reached up and wiped a tear from her eye.

"That bear saw me through some tough times... Take care of him, okay?"

Oliver just nodded at that.

"Happy birthday, kiddo."

Amanda stood and moved to lean against the wall, gazing around the room. Oliver took this as his cue to head deeper into the room.

"Happy birthday, sonny!" Officer Gomez greeted before sipping from his bottle of Nuka-Cola. He gave a wave back as he calmly shuffled around the booths to make his way to the diner counter. Stanley was there, and he wanted to ask him about his new Pip-Boy. But the Overseer stopped him as he passed, seated at the nearest booth.

"I hope you appreciate the effort Amata put into this party. She really seems to like you... for some reason."

Oliver looked about at the decorations of the room before turning back to the Overseer, quirking an eyebrow. "Couldn't you have helped?"

"I do not allow the fact that Amata is my daughter to compromise my position as Overseer. I gave her all the appropriate paternal encouragement, of course, but I could not contribute extra vault resources. That is simply what my position requires. No more, no less. I know Amata understands that perfectly well."

He sighed, walking past him, and was stopped by Mrs. Palmer sitting on the other side of the booth.

"Are you having a nice party? Ten years old, my, my, my. Seems like only yesterday that your daddy came." At ten years old, most wouldn't think Oliver would pick up on that choice of words. But he was both a perceptive and precocious child. Of course, trusting his father implicitly, he just figured Mrs. Palmer was using a metaphor he hadn't heard before. "Goodness, listen to me ramble! You're waiting for your present, aren't you?"

"Yes, please." Came Oliver's reply in a soft, quiet voice.

"Such a nice, polite young man you are. But you really should speak up more. I was ten once, believe it or not. My goodness, the vault was practically crowded back then. Not like today. So few young people now... Of course, we had a _real_ Overseer back then. Worthy of respect. Not like that one over there, with his rules and his secrets." She subtly gestured to the Overseer, who Amata was scolding for giving his vault responsibility speech instead of relaxing and having fun. "Why, I have half a mind to just up and tell you..." She sighed. "Listen to me ramble. My point is... You have a brilliant mind, child. I just wish you had the voice to use it. "

The boy frowned.

"Now, now. No moping. It's your birthday. So... Here you go. A nice sweetroll that I baked for you just this morning. And it's all for you. You're the birthday boy. No sharing required today."

Mrs. Palmer handed him a sweetroll. It wasn't warm, but it was fresh and smelled really good. He said a thank you to Mrs. Palmer before continuing on down the tables, but was stopped by Paul Hannon, one of Butch's friends, sitting with him and Wally.

"Hey, uh, thanks for inviting me. Really cool party and everything. I know that, uh, Butch and I give you a hard time, but you don't take that seriously, right? Anyway, uh, happy birthday and everything. I better get back to, ya know." He said.

"What, are you two best friends now? Hey, Wally, I think Paul's gone soft on us!" Butch teased.

"_Yeah_, Paul. Why don't you introduce us to your new _best friend_?"

"Who do you mean, dork-face over here? Happy birthday, dork-face!"

The sadistic laughter that followed, though clearly forced, was telling of the boy's future. Paul was actually a good kid, but he fell in with Wally and Butch. He had just turned around and began to walk to the diner counter, when Wally grabbed him by the arm, bringing him screeching to a halt. He whirled around the face him, a frown on his face.

"This party's pretty good, I guess. For a little kid. _Balloons_, party hats." He mocked. "Not as cool as my party, though. Remember how my dad got Andy to do magic tricks? And we all played Hunt the Mutant in the Atrium? Oh, right! You weren't invited to my party! Too bad, man. It was really fun."

Sighing, Oliver turned around, ignoring Butch's henchman.

"Attention everyone! It is time to cut the cake!" Andy, the vault's resident Mr. Handy robot announced. He was situated behind the counter, facing the cake, but he wasn't facing it with his pincer arm, nor did said arm hold a knife. Instead the side with the buzz saw was... oh no...

"Andy! Wait!" Amata cried.

Within moments, the cake was desecrated with Andy's buzz saw arm, splattering all over the counter.

"Oh no..." Amata sighed.

Andy turned to face Oliver. "Allow me to wish you a happy birthday." He greeted in his British butler voice. "I _would_ offer you a piece of cake, but..."

Oliver chuckled, a small smile on his face.

"Rest assured, I am _mortified_ about the cake mishap. Simply _mortified_." The robot continued.

His light laughing settling down, Oliver only gave Andy a thumbs up.

At least Stanley didn't mind salvaging some of the splatter onto his plate. He pressed forward on his gauntlet through the social setting of his tenth birthday party, finally rounding the counter to talk to Stanley. But he found Sparky standing in the corner, right by the maintenance worker.

"Happy birthday, young master!" the cyberdog greeted, his voice like a lighthearted child's. Even while speaking, his tongue and mouth continued to pant. The speech program was built-in. He didn't have to use his jaws to make it work.

"Sparky... Glad you could make it to the party..." Oliver knelt down to rub the cyberdog's neck and scratch his ears. The German shepherd may have had sub-dermal armor, but he could still feel touch, and most of it was covered with fur and flesh. It was just the large patch on his back, the area around his right eye, his left front leg, and his right hind leg that showed the metal underneath. The left eye was still a brown doggie eye, but his right was just a glowing red bionic eye. Butch one time told him that if he had a dog, he'd want it to at least have two eyes. Sparky would defend by saying he _does_ have two eyes, and they work great.

"You know how it is. Where your dad goes, I go. Woo hoo!" the cyberdog cheered, barking along with it. Yes, he could even bark and talk at the same time if he wanted.

"Right. Um... just... try not to throw up on the floor, okay, boy?"

The cyberdog's tongue slipped back into his mouth as he closed it and tilted his head to the side. "That doesn't happen very often!" he defended.

He chuckled, finding the spot right on his side that made his leg thump on the floor. "Maybe they should have let _you_ cut the cake, Sparky..."

"Oh, yes! I would have _loved_ to cut the cake!" It was funny how he could talk even while enthralled in a good petting session. "But, you know, I would have eaten it, too. All of it."

Oliver smiled. He stood up, leaving Sparky to shake his body a bit as he sat down on his hind legs and looked up at him, yawning. "Well, thanks for the happy birthday wishes."

"Yes, indeed! And in ten more years, you'll be older than me!" He chuckled. The cyberdog tilted his head to the side once more. "No, wait... that's not how it works, is it?"

"I don't think so, you big goof."

"Oh well. Have fun at your party, young master! I'll be right here, seeing if I can mooch some of your birthday cake off Stanley."

"Actually, want my sweetroll instead?"

The cyberdog's eyes lit up, his tail immediately wagging a mile a minute. "Really?!"

Oliver nodded. "Sure." He held the baked good out for the dog, who gently took it between his teeth.

"Thanks! Sweetroll!" the Cyberdog cheered, still speaking clearly despite the object in his mouth. He went off to the corner to eat it. Sparky knew not to scarf down any really good 'human food' he got, and had learned to hold objects between his front legs and take bites out of them, which he likely was going to do with the sweetroll. Smiling at the animal that brought quite a lot of life to this vault, Oliver turned to talk to the maintenance worker Stanley, hopping onto the stool next to him.

"How do ya like that there Pip-Boy, son? Fit all right and everything?"

Oliver smiled and nodded. Stanley was one of his favorite adults in the vault. He really enjoyed talking about programming with him, and Amanda was usually around him talking about mechanics. "Kinda looks like you did some work on it... You fix it up?"

"As a matter of fact, I did. I'm glad you like it. Some may think the A series, uhhh... a bit basic. Heavier than some of the fancier models, too. But I've always preferred them for their reliability."

"Yeah, think you mentioned that when you showed me your own Pip-Boy. Didn't you say you can drop a bomb on these things and they'll still work?"

"Wow, so you _are_ paying attention to my tangents, huh? Just be warned, you can't get it off once it's on. Biometric seals and all that. I could tell you some stories of trying to take 'em off the old folks." He started to chuckle, but stopped as Oliver's eyes widened in horror. "Ah, well, that's hardly a fit subject for a kid's birthday party. Besides, not like you'd want to get it off. Your Pip-Boy's the best friend you'll ever have. You'll get used to it. Soon, you'll wonder how you ever got by without it. But here I am goin' on about your Pip-Boy so I clean forgot to give you your present. Close your eyes, now." He did. "Happy birthday!" He felt the party hat removed from his head and replaced with something soft. Oliver opened his eyes and felt the top of his head to feel a baseball cap atop it, and judging from the color of the bill, a red one.

"Thanks, Stanley..."

"Hey, don't mention it. So, see you tomorrow in the main frame room? We've got some terminals in there that seem to be locked up. First vault responsibilities, remember?"

"Course, Stanley. Wouldn't miss it for anything."

Hopping off the stool, he stepped out from the counter to talk to Amata some more, but Butch got his attention.

"I'm hungry, and that stupid robot destroyed the cake! Gimme that sweetroll you got from Old Lady Palmer!"

Oliver shrugged. "Already gave it to Sparky, Butch..."

"What? You gave it to the dog? Ugh! You'll be sorry!"

Before Oliver could react, Butch leapt from his seat at the diner booth, his fast nailing Oliver right in the nose. As blood began to seep from his nostrils, Butch landed a punch into the boy's stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

"Say uncle!"

Officer Gomez ran forward and yanked Butch away from Oliver by the neck of his jumpsuit.

"Butch! What do you think you're doing? Leave him alone!"

Butch went to sit down, Officer Gomez kneeling before Oliver and pulling out a Stimpak from his pocket. Every Vault officer carried a supply of two for these emergencies, and Gomez promptly stuck one in Oliver's arm, his nose healing right up.

"I hope Butch didn't hurt you. Do you want to tell me what that was all about?"

"Nothing... My fault..." Oliver told him, sniffling. But Office Gomez could see through it. Oliver never tried to get anyone else in trouble...

"Why that little... I figured it was him that started it. He's been nothing but trouble since the day he was born. You let me handle this. And try to stay out of the way."

Oliver bit his lip, watching as his favorite security officer turned to where Butch sat.

"All right, Butch."

"Heeeeey, Officer Gomez! Nice party, huh?" the boy replied nervously.

"Can it. I've had it with you, Butch. Your mother is going to hear about this little incident."

"What did he tell you, it was my fault? You didn't hear what he said to me!"

"I'm not going to tolerate any more of your bullying."

"Fine, tell my mom. Big deal!"

"For now, just remember, I'm keeping my eye on you!"

Officer Gomez turned to Oliver and gave him a wink, making the boy smile.

A beeping sounded from the intercom in the corner, Oliver's father getting up to answer it, but stopping at his son's side.

"Are you all right? Is Butch giving you a hard time again?"

Oliver nodded, knowing he could trust his father.

"I wish we didn't have to invite him, but there just aren't that many children your age in the vault. You shouldn't let Butch walk all over you. Once you start getting bullied, you'll never hear the end of it, and there are bullies out there far worse than Butch. But don't go looking for fights, either."

Oliver nodded again, this time with a small smile on his face. James Carpenter continued to the intercom, Amata approaching the boy next.

"What's Butch's problem, anyway? I can't believe he tried to start a fight at your own birthday party. What a jerk!"

Oliver kicked at the ground, placing his hands in his pockets. "My fault..."

"Wow, you really think that? God, Butch is such a butthead! Oh well. You can always count on him to make an ass of himself. Get it? Ha ha!"

Oliver managed a smile, nodding. It was Amanda who tapped him on the shoulder next, the boy turning to look at his older sister.

"What was that about? Are you okay?"

Oliver merely smiled, giving Amanda a thumbs up.

"Well, good to know you can look after yourself. Why don't you go see Dad? I think him and Jonas have something special planned for you."

Sure enough, Oliver turned around to see his father walking up.

"Hey, that was Jonas on the intercom. He and I have been cooking up a little surprise present. Jonas is waiting for you downstairs on the reactor level. Go ahead, I don't think anyone will mind if you slip out for a few minutes."

Nodding, Oliver turned and ran from the room, but immediately had a run-in with Beatrice, one of the adults of the vault. "Happy birthday, dearie! My _goodness_, I hope I didn't miss the party."

Most people would take offense to being spoken to like a child. But Beatrice spoke that way to everyone. Oliver merely shook his head in response to her.

"My, my. Ten years old already. Why, I can remember helping your dad change your diapers..." Oliver grimaced at that. "And now look at you! A great big grown-up ten-year-old, with your very own Pip-Boy. Since this was such a special occasion, do you know what I did? I wrote you a poem! Just for you! I hope you like it."

She handed Oliver a sheet of paper, and insisted she show the boy how to scan it into his Pip-Boy's databank.

"Thanks..." Oliver told her, his voice soft and quiet.

"You're welcome!" she chirped. "Run along now, dearie! And have yourself a wonderful birthday!"

Oliver nodded, turning and walking down the hall. As he turned the corner and was about to turn the next one down into the reactor, he noticed the Overseer heading up the stairs ahead of him. Crouching down low, he stuck to the shadows of the wall and followed him up. He didn't seem to notice him. He always was good at moving about silently and remaining undetected. Must've been from sneaking out of his room so much to go have secret sleepovers with Amata. As the Overseer turned the corner to go further up the stairs, he stopped, listening closely.

"Enjoy the party, sir?" That was Officer Kendall, one of the vault's security officers.

"Bah, I only showed up because Amata's friends with the brat." He frowned at those bitter words. "Give them a few more minutes then I want that place cleaned up and everybody back to work."

"Sure thing, sir." Officer Kendall replied, oddly cheerful. He heard footsteps, and quickly retreated back down the stairs and down into the reactor before the security guard came down and saw him.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

He walked down the stairs while looking down at the poem in his Pip-Boy. It was... strange, to say the least. Despite his youth, he could tell there was something... different... about Beatrice. Maybe it was the tarot card readings she offered in the Atrium. But this poem didn't seem like the kind of thing anyone would give a ten-year-old.

"What are you doing down here, young man? I thought kids weren't allowed on the Reactor Level."

He froze in his tracks, looking up from his Pip-Boy to find himself already at the bottom of the stairs, with Jonas standing across from him, looking him over mischievously from behind his iconic glasses.

"Oh... Dad told me it was okay to come down here..."

"Hey, relax! I was just teasing. Listen, now that you're ten, you don't have to take guff like that from grown-ups anymore. Got it?" He smiled. "Hold on one more minute. I think your dad will want to give you the surprise himself."

He turned around to see his father walk in, Sparky just behind him. "Are you ready for your surprise?"

Oliver nodded.

"The Overseer gave you your Pip-Boy, and you're old enough to do some work, so... I think you're old enough for this."

He stepped over to the corner, grabbing something from the shadows, and returned to hold it out for him. "Your own BB gun! It's... a little old, but it should work perfectly!"

Oliver smiled, gently taking the toy rifle.

"Jonas found it down here. It was in pretty rough shape. Took us a good three months to find the parts to get it working again. You know how tough it is to find a spring that small? Good thing Butch 'misplaced' that switchblade of his, ha ha! So, what do you think? Want to give it a try?"

Oliver looked around at the metal walls around them. "Can't shoot here..." he said.

"We sure can't, unless we want the Overseer beating down our door. Jonas and I have found a place, though. C'mon!"

He followed his father deeper into the Reactor Level, through a steel door, to where a nook had been set up with three targets cobbled together from various junk parts.

"Well, what do you think? You can come down here and shoot any time you want."

Oliver reached up and lifted the bill of his baseball cap, a smile on his face as he gave his father a thumbs up.

"Thanks..."

"Couldn't have done it without Jonas's help. You make sure to thank him."

"Happy birthday, buddy. I hope you have fun with it." Jonas added, waving.

"Thanks, Jonas..."

"Hey, you don't turn ten every day. Now go on and let me see you shoot something." He teased.

Oliver nodded, going to kneel before the upturned locker, resting his arms atop it as he aimed his toy rifle at first target. A single shot, and it went spinning. Wow, looked like he was pretty good at this. This was proven wrong when his next shot missed, however. But after that it was smooth sailing, and each target was hit. Then a very large cockroach emerged from behind the nearby lockers.

"Careful, it's a radroach. Think you can take care of that with your BB gun? Just aim and shoot, you'll be fine."

Oliver nodded, looking down the barrel of his BB gun. Taking a deep breathing, he exhaled, pulling the trigger. A BB went straight through the giant cockroach, killing it. Sighing in relief, Oliver stood, turning to see his father walking toward him.

"Good work! That's one less Radroach to deal with. Let's get a picture together. Capture the moment. Hey, Jonas, get a picture of me with the big game hunter!"

His father wrapped his arm over his shoulder, and he turned to face forward, his new BB gun still in his hands. Jonas was facing them with a big flashbulb camera held up.

"Smile!"

The flash was blinding.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

_Six years later..._

"As far as I can tell, you're a perfectly healthy sixteen-year-old boy. So, yes, you have to go to class to take your G.O.A.T. exam."

James set the medical instrument down, turning to see Oliver bring his hand up to cough into it.

"No, you're not sick, Oliver. When I started studying medicine one of the first things I learned was how to spot a kid playing sick to get out of taking a test. You'll do fine. It's not so bad. Everyone has to take it when they're sixteen. I had to, you have to, and so does everyone else. And most everyone makes it through without a scratch."

Oliver sighed.

"Hey, it's not my call. Those are the rules. You're sixteen now, so this year you take the G.O.A.T. C'mon, it's not so bad. Everyone has to take it. You'll do just fine."

"Anything I need to know about the G.O.A.T.?" the teenaged boy asked.

"The Generalized Occupational Aptitude Test. G.O.A.T. Everyone has to take it when they turn sixteen. I had to, and you do too. Helps to figure out what kind of job you'll have in Vault 101 when you get a bit older. So, pay attention, and try not to fall asleep. You know what the Overseer says. We're born in the vault, we die in the vault. Each is tested to determine their abilities, that they may work for the betterment of all vault residents. Hm. Sound familiar?"

That left a question on his mind. Eager to stall going to class, he pressed it. "Is it true, dad? Was everyone born in the vault?"

His father sighed again. It seemed like he was conflicted... He could tell. "That's what the Overseer says, isn't it? He's not about to let anyone else in, so I guess that's how it'll have to be. You're here now, and it's a hell of a lot better than being up there. All your mother and I ever wanted was for you to be safe, and you're safe here."

"Do we have to die in the vault? Can't we ever leave?"

Yes, it certainly seemed like these questions bothered him... He had several guesses as to why, but none were even close to the real truth. "That's not the way it works. And it won't do to go around asking questions like that. Especially not around the Overseer. I want to tell you something now. It's important, so listen closely... This place, this vault... It's not perfect, but it _is_ your home. You're safe here. Stay on the Overseer's good side and you always will be. You understand? You need to appreciate all you have. Because what's up there, on the outside... that's not the life I want for you. And it's not what your mother wanted for you, either."

His mother... His eyes glanced to the photo on his father's desk. He knew he'd regret asking his next question. It always made his father sad, and that made him sad. "Can we talk about... mom? What was she like?"

"Your mother, she... She was beautiful. But... beyond the beauty you've seen. There's just so much those old photos can never show." his dad explained. He could tell from his words... he loved her. And he missed her. "And she was passionate. About life, about love. But most of all... most of all she was passionate about you. When she became pregnant, it was the happiest I had ever seen her." He sighed. A long, pleasant sight. Oliver felt himself smiling just from the sound of it. "She had big things in mind for you... And so! Time for you to stop stalling and get to class. Please, son, please... Take these achievement tests seriously. The last thing I need is your mother's ghost haunting me because her only son became a... a garbage burner."

He smiled. "Bye, Dad."

"Take care son. Now get out of here. And good luck."

Sparky, who had been sitting just in the corner of the room behind the desk, walked up next.

"Good luck with your test, young master!" the cyberdog told him. Oliver knelt down to rub him behind the ears.

"Wish I had taken you up on that offer to help me study, boy." Oliver joked, smiling.

The cyberdog tilted his head to the side a little, sticking his tongue out and panting. "Oh, I bet I would've been a great tutor! Master says I can read at a third grade level, and I can even count to ten!"

Oliver chuckled. He loved Sparky. He was like a little brother to him, especially since his father was technically his registered owner, so he wasn't technically Oliver's. As he walked out of his father's office, he passed Jonas. "Good morning! Stopped in to see the old man before class, eh?"

He nodded. "Morning, Jonas."

Amanda was sitting at a nearby table, reading an issue of Fixin' Things. He walked over, staring at her.

Amanda had really grown in the past six years. But then again, so had he. While Oliver was sixteen now, Amanda was nineteen. She had, indeed, grown her black hair out, currently reaching to the middle of her back, holding it back with a blue hairband. She needed glasses now, much like the ones Jonas wore, and she had certainly filled out her jumpsuit even more, which was now impossible to zip at all past her expansive chest. They were almost equal in height now, despite the three year age difference.

"Didn't Dad tell you to stop stalling?"

Oliver gave a start, not having realized that his sister knew he was watching her. She hadn't even looked up from her magazine.

"You had to take the G.O.A.T. too?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"Of course! Everyone does. How do you think I wound up in Vault engineer training?"

Yes, much to Amanda's joy, she had wound up with the perfect job to match her childhood passion, and ended up getting to take apart and fix machines all day.

"My job gets decided by this, then?" Oliver asked.

"That's the idea, but how they get from one to the other is anyone's guess." Amanda told him, still not looking up from her magazine, though she did push her glasses back up her nose with her index and middle fingers.

"Any tips?"

This time, she paused, turning in her chair to look at him.

"Well, you didn't hear it from me, but Mary-Beth told me she just whined to Mr. Brotch and _he_ helped her fill it out to get the job she wanted."

"Hmm... Guess I'd better get it over with, then."

"Don't sweat it. You'll do fine." Amanda assured him.

As he passed his older sister, he found Stanley in the corner, sitting in the chair reserved for waiting patients. He waved to him, giving a cough, and he waved back. Outside, Andy was fixing the wiring behind an open panel in the wall, wishing him good morning and urging him to be careful while he worked.

"Get out of my way, you stupid Tunnel Snakes!"

"I could show you a real tunnel snake, A-ma-ta."

Oh, great. His best friend was getting accosted by the resident vault bully and his two flunkies. He had to help her.

Walking up to where the three of them surrounded his friend, Oliver tapped Butch on the shoulder. The Tunnel Snake jumped, turning around to face the young man.

"Yeah? What do you want?"

"Problem here?"

"None a your business, kid. Get outta here before ya get hurt. If you mess with the Tunnel Snakes, you're asking for it. Got me?"

Oliver stood his ground, placing his hands on his hips.

"Keep messing with her... Answer to the Overseer..."

Butch's eyes faltered. He could see the wisdom in that, even from his mortal enemy.

"Maybe you're right. We can deal with her later. C'mon, Tunnel Snakes. This little bitch isn't worth our time."

"Whatever you say, Butch. You're the boss. Tunnel Snakes rule!" Paul Hannon cheered. He used to be such a nice boy... Butch and Wally had really tainted him...

"Fine. Let's go." Wally Mack shoved Oliver roughly as he passed, but Amata steadied him before he fell over.

"Thanks for getting rid of them. Assholes. You've always been a good friend."

Oliver smiled at her. "Just repaying you for all the times you've helped me."

The two made their way into the room, taking their seats at their respective desks. Butch and Wally were glaring at him, but he just gave them a small smile. Mr. Brotch began addressing the class. "Well, now that everyone has managed to find the classroom, we can finally get started. No talking, and keep your eyes to yourselves."

Butch snickered.

"Yes, I'm talking to _you_, Mr. DeLoria."

"Sure thing, Mr. Brotch."

"Unless anyone else has an insightful comment, let's get started."

The slide on the projection flipped over several images to depict the scenario of each question, which asked what the test taker would do in each hypothetical situation. The questions didn't seem to relate much to occupations in the vault. Each one had four options to choose from, but few of them were things Oliver would actually do. The tenth question was the strangest. Mr. Brotch read it as if he was bored with saying it.

"Question ten. Who is, indisputably, the most important person in Vault 101? He who shelters us from the harshness of the atomic wasteland, and to whom we owe everything we have, including our lives?"

There were four options like the previous nine questions. But they were all the same. 'The Overseer'.

"Pencils down! That's it, people. The infamous G.O.A.T." The lights turned back on. Mr. Brotch began walking over to his desk to receive the tests. "I'm sure most of you didn't find it so bad. For the rest of you, well... there's always openings in the maintenance department. Don't forget to hand in your test before you leave. You don't want to know what happens to people who _fail_ the G.O.A.T. You can have the rest of the day off to celebrate, or to _pray_, as the situation warrants." He chuckled.

He wasn't sure what to put for a lot of the questions. Most of the students got up to line up at the desk. Amata was first.

"Here you are, Mr. Brotch. I hope I did okay."

"Nothing for you to worry about, Ms. Almodovar. Let's see... very well done!" he sounded impressed. "Looks like it's the supervisory track for you."

"Thanks. See you tomorrow."

Butch was next in line. "Yo, teach. I'm done."

"Ah, Butch. Can I say that I've been looking forward to this day for a long, _long_ time? Allow me to savor the moment." Mr. Brotch began. "Now then, let's see... Really?... Interesting..." Oliver knew Mr. Brotch was drawing it out because he was loving every moment of it, and enjoyed tormenting those who deserved it. "You've surprised me, Butch. I didn't think you had it in you. Hairdresser! Who would have thunk it?" Oliver smiled.

"You're so full of it!" Butch asserted. "That isn't true!"

Mr. Brotch offered no further words, so Butch walked off grumbling to himself while Paul Hannon stepped up to the desk. "I'm all done, Mr. Brotch. I guess. Uh... Wait a second. Can I have it back? I think I need to change one of my answers..."

"Just calm down a minute, Paul. I'm sure you have nothing to worry about. Let's see... Mmm hmmm... Yep. Just as I thought. You're slated for the engineering track. Congratulations, Mr. Hannon. You've passed the G.O.A.T."

"Oh, gee. That's not so bad. Engineering. All right!" Paul sounded pleased with his result. He could only hope he'd like what he got...

Christine Kendall was next. "Mother can't wait to find out if I'll be going into science or home economics." She told Mr. Brotch as she handed in her test.

"Science. Ah, well... Perhaps. Let's see what the G.O.A.T. says." Mr. Brotch said with a bit of unease. "Well, well! Maintenance department! I... hope your mother will be pleased. I'm sure Stanley will."

"What? That's impossible! I'm telling father! He won't let you get away with this!" She ran off out of the room. She always was a bit of a snob...

Susie Mack, Wally's sister, was next. "Here. What's this stupid test say I'm going to be doing for the rest of my life?"

"Now, now, Susie. Is that anyway to talk about the infallible G.O.A.T.?" Mr. Brotch chided. "You will be..." He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "You'll be going into teaching. No doubt due to your gift for communication. Not to worry, it isn't as bad as it sounds."

"About what I figured. I guess I'll see ya around, _Edwin_." Ugh. How could anyone talk to Mr. Brotch like that?

Her brother Wally Mack was next. "I'm finished. Here."

"Don't you want to find out what you got?"

"Nah, I already know what it says. Hardly takes a rocket scientist to crack _that_ joke of a test." He walked off. He overheard Mr. Brotch mumble to himself.

"Well I'll be damned, that little so and so. Wish I'd thought of that when I was sixteen..."

Freddie Gomez was the last one to head up, and seemed very distraught over his test. However, it seemed he was the, errr... new vault masseuse. Wow...

When everyone had left, though Amata was waiting outside, Oliver was the last to head up to the front of the room to hand in his test. Mr. Brotch looked it over, his eyes widening.

"Looks like you'll be working with your dear old dad in the clinic, Mr. Carptenter. You're the new vault doctor, it looks like. Something you should excel at."

Oliver smiled. Yes! He got what he wanted.

"Nice to know the G.O.A.T. occasionally gets it right. You know what they say about monkeys and typewriters."

Smiling to himself, Oliver left the classroom, where Amata was waiting for him.

"Hey, wanna head to the diner for some lunch?" she asked.

Oliver nodded. He was craving a Nuka-Cola and some Cheezy Poofs.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

_Three years later..._

_August 17th, 2277, 9:04 AM_

"Wake up! C'mon, wake up!"

Oliver Carpenter peeled his eyes open to see his best friend, Amata Almodovar, standing over him. He sat up, pausing to stretch his arms and yawn, before arranging the covers over his nude body so he could speak with his friend properly.

"C'mon, you've got to wake up!"

"Hmmm?" he asked, still not fully awake.

"You've got to get out of here! Your dad is gone, and my father's men are looking for you!"

"What?" He rolled over and nestled back into the mattress.

Amata responded by pulling the covers off of him, sending him tumbling to the floor. "He's left the vault! I don't know how, but he's gone, and my father... he's kind of gone crazy."

Now he was fully awake. He stood up, walking over to his dresser to retrieve one of his vaultsuits.

"Gone? Impossible... Can't be all, either. Sound too scared, Amata..."

"It's Jonas! They killed him!" Oliver's rifling through his dresser stopped, turning to stare at his friend with wide eyes. "My father's men... they took him, and... Oh my God, you have to leave, now!"

Amata seemed close to crying. Oliver walked over and wrapped his arms around the girl in a hug. Something most wouldn't do until dressed, but there were no secrets between him and his best friend. "You going to be okay, Ammy?"

"Yeah. Don't worry about me. I'm just sorry you had to find out like this. I know Jonas was your friend." Her voice sounded feeble. If Oliver hadn't hugged her, she'd be crying right now. "But we've got to go now! My father's men will be here any minute!" Now the urgency was back in her voice.

Oliver returned to going through his dresser, tugging out one of the blue jumpsuits everyone wore in Vault 101. "Door was sealed. How?"

"I have no idea. But... you're really telling me you had no idea your father was planning to do this?"

He paused in putting his feet through the legs of his jumpsuit, turning to gaze down at the floor.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Ollie..." Amata soothed. "I'm sure he had his reasons. Maybe Jonas was supposed to explain everything to you? But it doesn't matter. _I_ can help you escape! _I_ have my _own_ plan!"

Oliver nodded, slipping his arms into the sleeves and zipping up the jumpsuit.

"There's a secret tunnel that leads directly from my father's office to the exit. You'll have to hack the computer in his office to open it."

"No problem." Oliver was an expert computer hacker, after all. "Let's go find Amanda and get out of here." The look on Amata's face spoke volumes. "Amata? Something happen to sis?"

"She... I got to her first. We were on our way to see you when my father's men found us. Amanda... she turned herself in so that I could run and wake you up. My father's probably keeping her locked up somewhere until he can find you..."

"Sis sacrificed herself?"

"She said as the older sibling, it was up to her to let you escape..."

"Need to hurry! Maybe I can save her!"

"Wait! I stole my father's pistol. I hope you won't need it, but you'd better take it just in case." She showed him a 10mm pistol standard of all Vault 101 security officers.

Oliver shook his head. "No. Have my baseball bat. More humane than a gun in case I run into trouble. Might need that gun more than I do."

"Well... okay. I guess it may come in handy if I run into any radroaches. I'll try to meet you at the exit. Rescue Amanda if you can. Good luck!"

Turning, Amata ran off. That's when the situation began to hit Oliver. He'd have to make his way out of here alone... and he only had a short time to prepare.

He took a look at himself in the mirror. Over his nineteen years of life, Oliver had grown into a very boyishly attractive young man. Butch was often quick to call him a prettyboy. He had grown his white hair to his neck, shaggy atop his head with bangs hanging down to frame his face, a lock between his hazel eyes so they peeked out from between strands of his snowy locks. He was only five feet, six inches tall, a bit on the short side, with a lean, almost slender body with very little muscle on it. His skin was oddly pale for someone who was biracial, but he inherited his African-American mother's white hair and hazel eyes.

Okay, he had to pack. He grabbed his dark green backpack from the corner and looked for anything he could put in it. First, a spare vaultsuit. He didn't want to be stuck with only one outfit. He was a designated hitter for the little league games they played in the atrium. Chosen for his speed at running the bases, he was told. His baseball and mitt from the game would make good memories. So would the Grognak the Barbarian issue he received from Amata on his tenth birthday. He packed all three. The first aid kit on the wall by his desk held a dose of Med-X and a few stimpaks, which he packed in the side pockets of his backpack for easy access. The baseball cap he also got on his tenth birthday would also be useful, so he grabbed it and slipped it onto his head. His BB gun... Or Black Bart's Bane as he named it. It was less lethal than a handgun, and a firearm, even a toy, might come in handy. He grabbed the canister of BBs as well. Finally, Mr. Patches. The teddy bear given to him by his sister still sat on the shelf above his desk, and he grabbed it, stuffing it in his backpack. Okay, that should be everything. Now he had to make his escape.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The moment he stepped out of his apartment, he saw Officer Kendall just down the hall.

"There he is! Hold it right there!"

He froze, but the officer was set upon by three radroaches. "Criminy! More roaches!" He started hitting them with his police baton. "Take that, ya little buggers!"

Immediately, Oliver ran forward and whacked one of the radroaches with his baseball bat, squishing it, then dashed for the second and slammed it into a wall just as Officer Kendall finished with the first radroach.

"Officer Kendall, you ok-" He was silenced with a police baton to the face. Oliver recoiled back, clutching his bleeding nose. "Officer Kendall! What's gotten into you?" He ducked as he swung his baton at him again. It was obvious he intended to either kill or maim him. Gripping ol' Excalibat tightly, he lunged in and jabbed him in the stomach with the back of the handle. As he leaned forward in pain, he used the tip to flip his helmet off, then whacked him on the side of the head. He fell to the ground. It took him a few moments to register what he'd just done. He... he attacked another human being. One he actually knew. Was he dead? He looked down at his form to find he was still breathing. Good. Just unconscious. He'd have to do something similar with any other vault security officers he ran into. Shaking his limbs to steady his nerves and rid himself of the trembles wracking his body, he ran ahead to make his way out of the vault, but was stopped when Butch turned the other corner and ran up to him.

"You gotta help me! My mom's trapped in there with the radroaches!"

He quirked an eyebrow at his lifelong bully.

"Yeah, I'm askin' you for help. So what?" was his indignant reply. "Look, I'm sorry for the way I've always treated you. You know I never meant any of it, right? But it's my Mom. You can't leave her in there with the radroaches, alright?"

He was surprised. He sounded genuinely sincere for once. The sorry for how he'd treated him all her life was a bit half-hearted, but he actually seemed concerned for his mother's safety. "Take me to her..."

"No, I can't go back in there. It's dark, and... and there's radroaches." the Tunnel Snake explained, albeit with unease.

Okay, it really wasn't all that dark in this part of the vault, not with all the back-up lights on. So that means... "You afraid of radroaches?"

"Yeah, I hate radroaches. I can't stand them! They seriously creep me out. I admit it! You just gotta help my mom! Can't you hear her in there screamin'? She's not gonna last much longer!" he pleaded.

Hmm... He knew he should probably go and do this for Butch... but if he didn't face his fear right now to save his mom, he'd regret it. It's what was best for him.

"Butch... You have to go in there. She's your mom. You have to face your fear and be a hero."

"Yeah, what do _you_ know?"

"Lucky, Butch... I've... never had a mother..."

That did it. He was sincere, but he really didn't expect, or plan for, his show of emotional weakness to actually faze his lifelong tormenter. The look on his face... he'd never seen him look at him with anything else than contempt. Was that... sympathy in his eyes?

"Okay, okay... But all I got on me is my toothpick. I need somethin' better."

He was going to regret this... but he reached for the strap on his backpack and handed him his BB gun. "Take this, Butch."

"Whoa, where'd ya get this?" the Tunnel Snake exclaimed with renewed confidence. "Let's get in there and save my mom!"

Butch turned and ran back around the corner, with Oliver in fast pursuit. He led him right into his apartment, where his mother was being nipped and ravaged by three radroaches. Her distraught cries for her 'Butchy' were particularly unsettling. When the two entered the room, it was clear Butch's confidence was wavering now that he was actually faced with his greatest fear. Oliver reached up and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. Butch didn't turn to look at him, but his face tightened in determination, as did the grip on his BB gun. Charging in, he kicked one of the radroaches off his mother, firing a BB right into it as it sailed through the air. Two more dead-center shots into the other two radroaches and the toy rifle fell from his hands, the Tunnel Snake dropping to his knees to soothe his traumatized mother. Oliver stood at the doorway, watching the touching scene while fighting back the urge to cry. It... must be nice... to have a mother...

He was brought out of his thoughts when Butch lunged at him and held him in a tight hug."We did it!" he cheered. "My mom's gonna be okay! You're the best friend I've ever had, Ol!"

"Um... Ol?" Not 'nosebleed'?

"That's your name, isn't it? Hey, I know it isn't much, but I want you to have my Tunnel Snakes jacket. Go ahead, take it." And he slipped the garment off his shoulders and tossed it to him, which he caught. It smelled a bit... but he could tell giving him this meant a lot to him, so... he slipped it on over his vaultsuit, just so he wouldn't feel bad. Actually... it was kind of comfortable.

"Thanks, Butch. Now... need to get going. Dad left the vault. Need to escape, too."

"Good luck, Ol! Lemme know if there's anythin' I can do to help!" Butch exclaimed. He turned to help his mother into a chair, handing her a bottle of vodka. Oliver turned and quietly slipped out the door to continue his trek out of the vault.

As much as he envied Butch for having a mother... he also felt bad for him. Ellen DeLoria was an alcoholic, vodka her drink of choice. She always used up all the ration coupons on as much of the vile stuff as she could, often leaving Butch hungry or neglected. It probably explained his bad behavior and serious attitude... he didn't think he'd ever see Butch again, but maybe the Tunnel Snake's new opinion of him would stick.

He passed the diner, the same one he had his tenth birthday party in, and saw someone lying on the ground, surrounded by another trio of radroaches. Fearing for their safety, he dashed in and gave each radroach a solid whack with ol' Excalibat. He checked, and it was grandma Taylor. She had no pulse... she was dead. He wished he could've gotten there sooner... maybe he could've saved her. But no use regretting it. He had to get out of here. It looked like the door leading straight from the diner to the Atrium was disabled for some reason. He'd have to take the long way around, past the clinic and classroom.

He ran past the hall to the Reactor Level and climbed up the stairs to the next level of the vault. He saw Officer Gomez ahead, and was prepared to subdue him. The Officer saw him, but he turned right around and started beating a radroach that emerged from the clinic. Three more accompanied it, but they were soon burned to a crisp by Andy's blowtorch. Oliver had to wonder why Mr. Handy robots were equipped with blow torches and buzz saws... it seemed so impractical for a robot designed for household chores. Though... Andy himself was a maintenance work type of Mr. Handy, not a household butler type. So that may explain it. Regardless, Andy ventured into the clinic right when the radroaches were burned. Officer Gomez turned and ran up to him.

"Oh, you're lucky it was me who found you. The others won't be so forgiving. I don't know what you're up to and I don't wanna know. Just clear out of here and I'll pretend I never saw you."

Oliver smiled. "Thanks, Officer Gomez... Always liked you…"

Though he was nervous a moment before, he noticeable relaxed at the young man's charming, subtle smile. "Don't worry. I've always had your back, right from the start. I'm just sorry it had to come to this. I can't believe what they did to Jonas... Officer Mack was just out of control... But you're a good kid. Always have been. You never did anything to deserve this. Go... Go find your dad. I just wish I could offer more... oh, hang on." He stepped closer, reaching into his pocket and pulling out two stimpaks. He injected both into his arm, one after the other, and his bloody nose healed right back up. "Hate to see your handsome face like that, Oliver..."

The young man smiled his charming smile. That was all the thanks Officer Gomez needed to let him know that his care touched him. "Hey... Officer Gomez... Ellen DeLoria and Butch were attacked by radroaches. Could use someone to guard them for a while in case more come or an officer other than you shows up."

Gomez merely smiled and gave a slow nod. Giving him a thumbs up, Oliver parted for the clinic. Maybe there was a clue in his father's office.

Andy had indeed headed into the clinic. Stanley, the maintenance worker who gave him his baseball cap and fixed up his Pip-Boy, was in there as well.

"Looking for your dad, huh? Well, he always took good care of us, so it's none of my business. I won't tell anyone I saw you." Stanley explained, grabbing his tool box and opening up a compartment on Andy's chassis.

"Ah, the young master is looking for his father, is he? I believe he went topside for a spot of fresh air. Should be back any moment." the Mr. Handy explained. Oliver could only roll his eyes at the robot's lack of common sense.

"Thanks, Stanley... Thanks, Andy... Means a lot to me..."

"Don't worry, kid. Everything'll be okay. Now... I need to get to work on Andy. His circuits got all frazzled after that. Good thing he loves toasting roaches so much, huh?"

A small smile graced his features. "Mind if I look around my dad's office for a sec?"

"I sure don't mind. He might've left a note for you, or something."

"Thanks..."

"Don't mention it."

He turned and made his way to his father's office. Stanley paused in his work on Andy, who was complaining all the while, and closed the door.

Inside, it looked like the place had been ransacked. The desk was overturned and the computer was on its side. He lied down on the floor to see if there were any files his father kept that might be of help.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

**Remember:** Medical files are _confidential_!

(He just knew that message was for him... he probably knew he was reading medical files. He really only wanted to learn more about medicine. Honest!)

**Patient Files:** _Freddie Gomez_

Freddie's VDS is getting worse. Most days, he can't even get out of bed. When he does manage to function, Freddie hides his insecurities and low self-esteem behind a bully's mask.

Vault-Tec medical protocols dictate the prescription of an anti-anxiety medication when Vault Depressive Syndrome is involved. but do I really want to string the kid out on Chlorpromazine for the rest of his life?

**Patient Files:** _Stanley Armstrong_

Stanley continues to suffer from severe and chronic head pain. I've been feeding him aspirin like it's candy, but I'm reticent to give him anything stronger. He blames the lighting in his quarters, and though eyestrain is certainly compounding the problem, the headaches are actually a symptom of overwork and lack of sleep. Knowing Stanley, and the schedule the overseer has him on, the problem isn't likely to get better anytime soon. So it's aspirin, indefinitely.

**Patient Files:** _Amata Almodovar_

Once again, the Overseer has insisted on being in the room for Amata's examination, throwing any inkling of doctor-patient confidentiality out the window. I know he doesn't trust me. He never has. But I honestly believe the reason he attends his daughter's medical appointments is that he doesn't trust _her_. That's as ridiculous as it is sad. Amata's a great girl, and the chance of her doing something stupid, like pregnancy, syphilis, whatever, is so unlikely it's not even worth mentioning.

**Experiments:** _Experiment 27CE_

The cells are still replicating normally. No mutation. Thank God. If whatever's out there could penetrate this vault, I can't even begin to imagine what the Overseer would do.

**Experiments:** _Experiment PP216_

After "borrowing" a few more water chips and rerouting some of the power here in the clinic, I've finally been able to affect the latest sample. It's not much, but considering what I have to work with it, a definite step in the right direction. But this new experiment was also monumental for another reason. It's the first time Jonas has assisted me. He's suspected forever, I know, so I guess it was inevitable. And his help has been invaluable. I just hope he knows what he's gotten himself into.

(He wasn't sure what to make of that one... the first experiment was obviously a test on the water purity in the vault, but... what was the second one? Could it have something to do with why he left?)

(He really knew he shouldn't... he'd never looked at it before... but this might be his last time looking at these files. He just hoped he wouldn't be disturbed by what he found...)

**Patient Files:** _Amanda Carpenter_

My daughter... my only daughter... it surprises me every day how much she reminds me of her mother. She takes after me, yes... but there's so much of her mother in every fiber of her being as well.

Well, enough sentimental ramblings. From her last check up, I can honestly say I'm a bit worried. It's not that she's in poor health. Far from it, in fact. But at twenty-two years old, she's grown at an alarming rate, her height clocking in at six feet for the past year. Catherine and I were both of average height, so I'm not sure how to explain it... but her development in other areas... I'm quite aware of where that comes from. Catherine herself was quite "blessed". As was my own mother. She's stopped growing I think, but DDDs are quite a lot to handle. She seems to have a slight sensitivity to estrogen levels during puberty. I doubt it's virginal breast hypertrophy... If it is, it's a very minor case. She doesn't exhibit tingling in her fingers or anything. Some very minor back pains considering their size, but nothing serious.

Blood tests seem to indicate she has a natural tolerance and slight natural resistance to radiation. Other tests seem to indicate she absorbs less radiation from food and drinks than most people. Isolated tests using Med-X seem to show she has a resistance to the addictive effects of chems, as well. Her metabolism is quite miraculous, which may explain why she's so slender.

Anyway, she's in perfect health, oddities aside. I fear she's spent too much time reading instead of sleeping, though. Her eyesight is terrible without those eyeglasses. From the vision tests, it seems anything more than a foot in front of her is a total blur. I must wonder exactly how much she reads and for how long each day. I've always noticed her to be an overachiever. At least she knows to stick to mechanics, but I have to wonder about her keen interest in locksmithing.

**Patient Files:** _Oliver Carpenter_

And then there's my son. Second born, he's grown into quite a handsome young man, though I suppose others would call him a 'prettyboy.' Shorter than his sister by half a foot, his frame is quite small, making him easier to injure. Aside from that, he shows all the health strengths of his sister, like her metabolism and resistance to addiction and radiation.

Like his old man, he's taken a keen interest in medicine and science. He doesn't need glasses, though, and I know the full reason for this... but that's not a subject to discuss here.

He takes after me so much, it's almost alarming to see... I once heard that it's scary to see yourself in your child... And I see so much of myself in Oliver...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Standing up, Oliver took a look around the room for anything else that could offer a clue. On the wall was the framed quote from the Bible his mother loved. Revelation Twenty-One Six. _I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely._ He had it memorized, considering how often his father told it to him. But he noticed something else for the first time... a keyhole on the side of the display case. He tried to pry the case open, but... it seemed to be a very advanced lock. His skills were focused on medicine and science, not lockpicking. If only Amanda were here...

"Yo, Ol. What's up?"

He turned to see, to his surprise, Butch standing in the doorway! He quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Gomez stopped by our place to keep an eye on us. Said you sent him. Thought I'd repay the favor by givin' back your BB gun." He tossed the toy rifle to him, which he caught. "Now it looks like I can repay you another way... Havin' some trouble with a lock, huh?"

Oliver nodded.

"Not to worry. Leave this to the Butch-man."

Striding forward, Oliver sidestepped out of the way so Butch could take a look at the lock.

"Have some bobby pins?" the boy asked.

Butch just scoffed. "Please, Ol. Bobby pins are for amateurs."

The Tunnel Snake reached into the pocket of his jacket... the one Oliver was wearing, and exited with a cherry-shaped object. He wedged it into the lock, then stepped back.

"Might wanna stand back and cover your ears, Ol."

Oliver did so, and to his mild surprise, the lock exploded. Evidently, it was a cherry bomb.

Butch stepped aside so Oliver could take a look inside the frame. He was surprised to find a hidden compartment behind the quote. Inside he found a holotape and a bag that jingled as he picked it up.

"What's in the bag?" Butch asked.

"Bottecaps..." Oliver answered, peeking into it. There seemed to be about three hundred of them, although that was only a rough estimate. Granted, he was really good at math.

"What, your dad collect 'em, or somethin'?"

"Not sure..." He decided to load the holotape into his Pip-Boy and give it a listen.

"_Well, here we are. Nestled all safe and snug inside Vault 101. It's so cold down here. Colder still with Catherine gone... Oh, Catherine... I so wish you were here with me. How the hell am I supposed to do this by myself? Live down in this hole. Take care of our children... But this is our life now, so I guess I'd better get used to it. The Overseer who runs the place is an overbearing bully, but I've dealt with worse."_

He wasn't sure what to make of it. Nor was he sure why he pocketed the bag of bottlecaps in his backpack. If dad collected them, he might want them back, he figured.

"Some message your dad recorded?" Butch wondered.

"Guess so... Have to ask him about it... Thanks for your help, Butch... Need to get going..."

"Hold on a sec, Ol. I'm comin' with you."

He paused, turning to look at the Tunnel Snake and quirk his eyebrow at him.

"You're gonna need my help to reach the entrance, Ol. Let Butch be your bodyguard."

Oliver quirked his other eyebrow.

"Ol... you saved my mom's life. That's all the reason I need."

The young man sighed. "Okay, but... need something to defend yourself with."

"Got it covered." He showed him a scoped .44 magnum revolver. His eyes widened.

"Butch? Where'd you get that? The only firearms kept in Vault 101 are 10mm pistols..."

"Just a memento of my pa. This thing was snuck into the vault by one of my ancestors right before the War. Every generation has kept it safe, tinkerin' with it a little bit over the years. My pa was the last to own it, and he kept it in a locked box until I was old enough to have it myself. Of course, I'd blown the lock on that box ages ago, but only now did I take it out. Pa said it was called the Callahan's Magnum, after the first DeLoria back before the War. Got more kick than a usual .44, but nothin' I can't handle."

"And you have ammo for it?"

"You bet. Ol' Callahan DeLoria snuck in a whole box of the stuff along with this thing."

Oliver sighed. "Okay... But no killing anyone... Only use that gun if you have to... Otherwise, use your knife or your fists... Okay? And try not to cause any serious injuries... Just incapacitate them..."

"Shit, that goody-two-shoes crap is crampin' my style." He gave him an icy look. He sighed. "Fine. Your escape, your rules, Ol."

"Thanks, Butch..."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The second Oliver and Butch exited into the Atrium, they found Tom and Mary Holden standing there.

"We should go back to our rooms..."

"It's our only chance, don't you see. We're getting out of here just like the doctor. I'm not gonna let anyone stop us!"

Tom took off running, despite Mary's cries to be careful. Oliver knew he had to stop him. Dashing forward, surprised at his own speed, he tackled Tom Holden out of the way just as the bullets flew at him from down the entrance hall. Brandishing his baseball bat, he charged down after the assailants. Both security officers, Richards and O'Brian, had 10mm pistols, and fired upon him the second they saw him. As he ran, he jumped side to side, preventing any chances of them hitting him. Still, a bullet grazed his shoulder. When he was nearing them, he ducked low and slid under Richards's legs, flipping his helmet off and whacking him on the back of the head. Oliver jumped to his feet and gave O'Brian a swing to the head with the side of his baseball bat. The helmet flew off, so he took the chance to jab him right in the face with the handle. He toppled. The pistols would actually come in handy, so Oliver took both of them and their ammo, putting them in his backpack. Mary was tending to Tom on the ground. Oliver ordered them both to run for the apartments and stay in their rooms. They obeyed wordlessly.

"Ol, that was amazin'!" Butch exclaimed. "I didn't know you could move that fast! It was wild!"

A small smile graced Oliver's face. "Thanks, Butch..." He clutched his shoulder, wincing.

"Hey! Over here!"

Wait... Oliver knew that voice! Running to the corner, sure enough, he found his sister Amanda locked in a storage room, banging on the window.

"They're saying Dad left the vault. Is it true?"

Oliver nodded. He walked over to the door, finding it locked.

"Damn door! Can't you break the glass or something?"

Oliver nodded, gripping his baseball bat. Rearing his arms back, he landed a solid blow to the window, but it only dented and slightly cracked the shatter-proof glass.

"Hang on, I've got an idea." Amanda told him. She walked over to behind the door. "I think if I just... come on... there!" The door slid open, Amanda walking out and pulling her younger brother into a big hug.

"Ollie! I was so worried about you!" she exclaimed, hugging Oliver's face to her ample bosom.

Oliver looked up at his sister's face, wrapping his arms around her to hug her back.

"Hey, you two! C'mon! We need to head to the second level!" Butch called.

Oliver pulled away from Amanda, turning to Butch and nodding.

"Whoa, not yet. There's radroaches on the stairs. You take care of 'em first. Then I'll follow you up."

Oliver sighed. Butch faced his fear for his mother, but... old habits die hard. So, giving Amanda one of the 10mm pistols from the two security guards, the two stormed upstairs, shooting and beating down three radroaches as they ran. They found Security Chief Hannon on the way up, and quickly subdued him, but made sure he was just knocked out, not dead. The stairs deposited them on the balcony of the Atrium, where they found two more radroaches scurrying about. Oliver beat them down as he passed. Butch was hot on their tails, but as they passed by the window to an apartment, they saw Allen Mack pounding on the window, his wife at the table behind him, telling herself to get a grip.

"You! This is _your_ fault! You and your stupid father! He had to go and leave, didn't he? He had to mess things up for everybody! Guards! Guards! They're over here! The doc's stupid kids are over here! They're trying to leave the vault! Don't let 'em get away!"

Amanda was frightened that he would call more guards to their location, but Oliver grabbed her hand and continued on into the utilities room, though Butch paused to make a face at Mr. Mack through the window. Inside, they found four more radroaches, which Oliver beat down and Amanda shot while Butch waited outside the room. They found one of the Vault's engineers, Floyd Lewis, lying dead on the floor next to his tool box. He was probably killed by the radroaches. Oliver didn't know Mr. Lewis very well, but he still felt bad that now three people had died because of all this. They continued on down the hall, and soon passed the security office. Oliver paused and ducked down at the window to the room, peering in to see the Overseer interrogating Amata with Officer Mack. The same Officer Mack who killed Jonas!

"I told you, I don't know anything!" Amata cried. Butch and Amanda ducked down low to watch with him.

"Be reasonable, Amata. Officer Mack may enjoy this, but I don't. Just... tell us where to find your friend, so we can... _talk_ to him." He gave Butch and Amanda a look. When the time was right, they'd rush in and save Amata. The Tunnel Snake and engineer nodded in understanding.

"He's my friend! I was worried about him! What does he have to do with any of this anyway?"

"Probably nothing. Which is why you need to tell me where he is so I can _talk_ to her." Oliver didn't like the Overseer's tone of voice. It was like a sneaky weasel...

"Watch out, sir! She's got a gun!" That was Officer Mack's voice. Sure enough, Amata pulled out the 10mm pistol she had intended to give to him. Amanda gasped, while Butch's eyes went wide.

"Amata! Where did you get that gun?"

"Just get away from me! I don't want to shoot you, but I will. I swear I will!" His best friend warned, getting up from her seat and backing away slowly, the pistol aimed at her father.

"How _dare_ you threaten me! And with my own gun!" the Overseer growled. "I'm your father, damn you, and you'll show me some respect! Officer Mack, don't just stand there!"

"Don't make me take that gun away from you, girlie. Just hand it over nice and easy, now." The officer warned. He slowly walked towards Amata.

"No! Get away from me!"

She fired. It hit Officer Mack right in the knee. He fell to the ground, clutching his leg. "Oh my God! Amata, what have you done?" She took this chance to run out of the room. Oliver stormed in right after she left, but gave Butch a look that silently told him to go after Amata and see if she was okay. He complied. Officer Mack looked like he passed out from the pain. Good. Now he could face the Overseer alone.

"I hope you're here to turn yourself in, young man." The Overseer told him, perfectly calm and condescending. "You're already in enough trouble as it is. Don't make it worse for yourself."

Oliver stared the Overseer down with a cold, icy glare, seeming to cast a chill over the room. It actually made the Overseer waver in his resolution. "If you ever lay a hand on Amata again, I'll make you regret it..." He stated, oddly calm, though his words carried the weight of a harsh winter.

"I place the good of the vault above everything, even my own paternal feelings. We must not allow sentiment to cloud our judgment! But I admire your protective instincts." He crossed his arms. "Very well. I give you my word that Amata will not suffer further because of your actions." His fists clenched in anger, possibly the first anger he'd ever felt in a lifetime of being so calm and mellow, but forced himself to be calm. If he hurt the Overseer, it'd hurt Amata more. "Now, then. If you really care about Amata, you will see how dangerous your father's actions were. Hand over your weapons, and put an end to this dangerous situation. There's no need to join your father as a traitor to the vault."

Oliver was about to retort, but then a hand slugged the Overseer right in the face. He turned to see it was his sister, Amanda, tears streaming down her cheeks, face contorted in rage. "Is that what you said to Jonas before you murdered him? Jonas was my friend! My father's no traitor, and you're nothing but a murderer and a thug!"

The Overseer was on the ground, pulling himself into a sitting position. Amanda was about to lunge at him for a full beat down, but a firm, yet gentle hand grasped her wrist, making her rage instantly melt away. She turned to see Oliver staring her down with a calm, cool look, shaking his head. He turned to the Overseer.

"Just give us your password and the key to your office... We'll be on our way and never bother you again..." Wow… That might've been the most Amanda heard her brother say at one time.

"Oh, is that all? Is there anything _else_ I can get you while you're here?" the Overseer mocked. "You'll get nothing from me. I'll die before I see the safety of the vault compromised again."

"We'll escape without your help, then. I'm not the one who started killing people." Oliver stated calmly. That put things in an entirely new light for Amanda... If she hurt the Overseer, it'd make her no better than him.

"Save your sanctimony. The world is a dangerous place and I make no apologies for doing whatever it takes to keep the vault safe. Guards! Help me!"

He should probably knock him out... but he shouldn't hurt him. That'd hurt Amata. So he grabbed Amanda's wrist and led her out into the hall.

"Wait!"

Oliver stopped, watching as his older sister pulled something out of her pocket, some sort of electronic device. She attached it to the card key reader for the door to the security office, and in a moment, the door shut and locked. Ah, of course. Her master locksmith skills. But she just closed and locked it, not unlocked it. Oliver quirked an eyebrow at Amanda.

"My Electronic Lock Pick Mark Two works in reverse, too, locking doors I don't have the card key for, too, silly. By the time someone brings the card key, the Overseer will probably have cooled down by then."

Nodding, Oliver gestured with his thumb that they should continue down the hall.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Just in front of the Overseer's office, Oliver and Amanda found a shocking sight. Jonas. Dead. On the floor, clearly beaten with a police baton. Amanda promptly released the contents of her stomach, Oliver holding her hair for her. She was reminded of the fact that she hadn't eaten breakfast today... But no way could she eat now. Oliver walked over to Jonas's body and removed his glasses, closing his eyes before returning the spectacles to their rightful place. He reached next to Jonas where a holotape sat, handing it to Amanda. She nodded, loading it into her Pip-Boy.

"_Hold on Jonas, I need to record this first. I... I don't really know how to tell you this. I hope you'll understand, but I know you might be upset. I thought about it for a long time, but in the end I decided it was best for you both not to know. So many things could have gone wrong and there's really no telling how the Overseer will react when he finds out. It's best if he can blame everything on me. Obviously you already know that I'm gone. It was something I needed to do. You're adults now. You're ready to be on your own. Maybe someday things will change and we can see each other again. I can't tell you why I left or where I'm going. I don't want you to follow me. God knows life in the vault isn't perfect, but at least you'll be safe. Just knowing that will be enough to keep me going."_

"_Don't mean to rush you, Doc, but I'd feel better if we got this over with."_ That was Jonas's voice.

"_Okay. Go ahead. Goodbye. I love you."_

Amanda was completely silent and still after listening to the recording, a last message from her father before he left. She might've stood there, lost in her own emotions, for years had her little brother not walked up and wrapped her in a hug. The door to the Overseer's and Amata's rooms opened, and out came Amata, who joined the group hug. Butch was just behind her, but he didn't take part. It was understandable. His idea of friendship was different from theirs. But then again... he _had_ said Oliver was the best friend he'd ever had. So, uneasily, Butch walked up and joined in hugging Amanda. She could bet it felt weird for him... but it probably also felt warm. A warmth he wasn't used to. They pulled apart, leaving Amanda to sniffle and wipe her glasses clean. Amata spoke first.

"Amanda, can you pick the lock to my father's office?"

"Of course I can. Just watch me go to work." She reached into her pocket and pulled out her Wattz Electronics Electronic Lock Pick Mark Two. She attached it to the card key reader and set to work.

After a few minutes, the door slid open, Amanda ushering the three of them inside. Once they all passed the threshold, she shut the door, locking it once more. Amata went to look out the window onto the Atrium, while Butch went to rummage through the nearby lockers. Amanda and Oliver went straight for the computer. "Can you hack it, Ollie?" she asked. He took a seat at the desk and set to typing, nodding.

A few more pushes on the keyboard, and they were in. "Wow. What was the password, Ollie?"

"Amata." Both Amata and Butch turned to look, surprised. Amanda smiled at the Overseer's daughter. "The Overseer may have a weird way of showing it, but he really does love you, Amata."

"I know." was the girl's only reply. She ran over to look over Oliver and Amanda's shoulders at the screen. It seemed several files were there. The door was locked, so they had plenty of time to read them.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Welcome, Overseer.

**View Security Dossiers:** _Jonas Palmer_

I never should have assigned Jonas as James' assistant. He was always too idealistic for his own good. Now he spends every waking minute with the good doctor, who gleefully fills his ears with even more idealistic nonsense. I've considered re-assigning him, but the truth is Jonas is a fine medic in his own right, and hiding him down in maintenance would be a terrible waste of resources.

**View Security Dossiers:** _Beatrice Armstrong_

Just what Vault 101 needs. An absent-minded, sexually repressed sycophant. Beatrice has served Vault 101 admirably for years, but her mind is growing feeble. I'll have to speak with our good doctor about some kind of long-term pharmaceutical solution. We may at least be able to keep her comfortable, and quiet, until she passes on.

(Amanda gasped at the implication.)

**View Security Dossiers:** _Amata Almodovar_

Every time I try to get Amata to open up, she just pushes me further and further away. Since she was a child, I've tried to instill in her those virtues that have made this Vault what it is today. Loyalty, honesty, commitment, hard work. She does try, and with a lot of guidance has grown into a fine young woman. That makes it all the sadder that she continues to alienate me. She looks at me and sees the Overseer, not the father that has cared for her alone (alone!) since she was an infant.

**View Security Dossiers:** _"Tunnel Snakes"_

If Butch and his leather-clad delinquents accost Amata one more time, they'll have more to deal with than their acerbic teacher. Their "services" have come in handy upon occasion, I must admit, but they're starting to become... unruly. If dogs become feral, they must be put down. I'll have to remind Butch of that upon our next meeting.

(What? Oliver looked to Butch, who, to his surprise, looked ashamed. He decided he wouldn't question him about it.)

**View Security Dossiers:** _Oliver and Amanda Carpenter_

As far as I can tell, they're very well-behaved children. They don't start trouble, never complain, never talk back, and always does what they're told. The fact that Oliver has been such a good friend to my Amata is both a blessing and a curse. When I look at them, Oliver in particular, I see an untapped, hidden potential. He might actually make a good candidate for next Overseer should something happen to Amata. He has a natural presence of leadership that even _I_ lack. He rarely takes charge himself, but every time he led an activity or helped plan an event, the other children all seemed inclined to follow his every word. I can tell. Deep inside, he has that fire that makes anyone willing to follow him into the depths of hell itself. It remains untapped, but again, should anything happen to Amata, I may be able to cultivate this seed into a ferocious venus fly trap. At the least, he would make a wonderful security chief, provided he ate a damn sandwich, the runt. I'll be keeping a close eye on both him and his sister.

(Amanda felt a little uncomfortable about that, but even she knew her brother had natural leadership capabilities. He didn't seem to show any reaction to reading that, though.)

**View Scouting Reports:** _Report 2241-02-10_

As our tests suggested, the immediate vicinity of the vault is no longer dangerously irradiated, although the background radiation is still well above safe levels. Pockets of more intense radiation appear to still be common, and all surface water seems to be undrinkable. We will need to carry ample supplies of Rad-X with us on all future surveys. But hazard suits do not seem to be necessary for general exploration.

Our old maps are largely useless. The town of Springvale is an abandoned ruin, and all pre-War roads have disappeared or are no longer passable.

We encountered a group of monstrous ants which appeared to confirm Mackay's theories of mutation due to extended exposure to radiation. We drove off the ants with gunfire and collected several specimens for study upon return to the vault (see Exhibit A).

The good news is that human civilization still survives, despite everything! We discovered a settlement known as "Megaton" (see Exhibit B), who's inhabitants, although somewhat wary at first, soon welcomed us into their town.

We spent a good deal of time in Megaton, and learned a great deal about the "Capital Wasteland" (as the area around Washington D.C. is now called) from them. Megaton is a fortified outpost of "civilization" (of sorts), but it seems that giant ants are the least of the dangers of this new world. We agreed that it was prudent to return to the Vault immediately to revise our survey plans in light of what we have learned. Lewis and Agnes remained in Megaton to serve as "ambassadors" and continue to collect information until we return.

Anne Palmer, Survey Team Leader  
February 10, 2241

(What? A scouting report? From thirty-six years ago? But... the Vault's been sealed since the Great War! Amanda looked to Amata and Butch to see their reactions, and they were just as shocked as she was.)

**View Scouting Reports:** _2241-02-10 Exhibit A_

It seemed to be a picture of giant ant. A dead one, but a giant ant. Amanda was quite disturbed by it.

**View Scouting Reports:** _2241-02-10 Exhibit B_

It looked like a picture of some sort of towering structure of scrap metal.

**Vault-Tec Instructions:** _Letter from Doctor Stanislaus Braun_

A Letter to the Overseer from Dr. Stanislaus Braun:

If you are reading this, emergency Vault internment procedures have been initiated and you and your control group have been sealed into your Vault. Congratulations! You are now a vital part of the most ambitious program ever undertaken by Vault-Tec.

If you have not yet read your sealed orders, do so now. They will outline the experimental protocols assigned to your control group. Please remember that deviation from these protocols in any way will jeopardize the success of the program, and may be considered grounds for termination by Vault-Tec Corporation (as outlined in your Employment Agreement).

Your Vault may or may not have been selected to receive a G.E.C.K. module. Please see Attachment A for details.

Doctor Stanislaus Braun  
Director, Societal Preservation Program  
Vault-Tec Corporation

**Vault-Tec Instructions:** _Attachment A_

Vault 101 will not receive a G.E.C.K. module, and should operate under the guidelines laid forth in the Overseer's sealed orders.

**Vault-Tec Instructions:** Vault-Tec Scientific Entry: The G.E.C.K.

The G.E.C.K. is, quite simply, the most advanced piece of technology ever developed by Vault-Tec. A terraforming module capable of creating life from complete lifelessness. After riding out the storm of nuclear Armageddon in a Vault-Tec patented vault, residents can then activate the G.E.C.K., and create a new Earthen paradise. Craters and dust will give way to rolling grasslands and sparkling clear water. Of course, due to time and monetary constraints, not every vault will be equipped with a G.E.C.K. module.

(Amanda had to wonder why they included an article on what the G.E.C.K. is even though Vault 101 wasn't given one.)

**Open Overseer's Tunnel**

Opening...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

To the four's surprise, the desk raised up on extending pistons, while the floor just in front of the desk slid open, revealing a set of stairs leading down. The three looked to Amata, unsure at first, but she gave them a simple nod, assuring them it'd be alright. They headed down and found a steel hatch, along with an electrical switch. They flipped it, putting the desk back in place and hiding the entryway, before continuing onward.

The door led to a dark room lined with steel. It almost looked like a sewer passage. All four turned on their Pip-Boy lights and ventured deeper, turning the corner to find a radroach. Oliver promptly whacked it with ol' Excalibat.

They passed through one more hatch, emerging in an empty room with grated floors and metal plating on the walls. Nothing was in the room aside from some white pipes leading from the floor to the ceiling in a few places, but ahead was an odd-looking indentation in the wall paneling, next to another electrical switch. Oliver stepped forward and flipped it, and the wall slid down to reveal the main entrance room! He hurried out, followed by his best friend, mortal enemy, and sister just on his tail, the hidden door closing behind them. The door to the rest of the vault was locked, so Butch and Amata stood guard on either side while Amanda worked the control panel for the vault door. Butch had his switchblade and pistol, the latter Oliver hoped he wouldn't use in the conventional way, and Amata still had her father's 10mm. Amanda readied her own 10mm pistol from one of the knocked-out guards, just in case more than two came out and one went for her. With a few button presses and a pull of a lever, an alarm sounded in alert, a large piston swinging down from the ceiling to lock into the gear-shaped door and turn it aside. The entire process was accompanied by a mighty screeching of metal against metal, with them only able to stare in awe, to the point they almost didn't notice the two guards enter from the previously locked door. Amata was quick to bash the one on her side on the head with her 10mm, while Butch whacked his on the back of the head with his .44 magnum. It looked like that was all who was coming.

"You did it! You opened the door! My God, I almost didn't think it was possible!" Amata cheered as the four rejoined in front of the control panel.

"No, we did it... Thanks Amanda, thanks Butch, thanks Amata..." Oliver said to them. Butch apparently wasn't used to being thanked. He turned to face away, shifting uncomfortably.  
Amanda just smiled, but Amata shook her head.

"No, you didn't need us, Ollie. If anyone can survive out there, it's you and Amanda. The Overseer is right. You're a person who can get things done and done right, even if you don't believe it yourself. I'm sure you won't be alone out there. You'll find people who'll be willing to follow while you lead."

"You're really not coming with us, Amata?" Amanda asked.

Amata shook her head. "No. It's tempting, but I need to stay here. Damage control while you're gone. Butch, too. We may need his muscle."

Amanda giggled, despite Butch turning around to stick his chest out proudly.

"If you catch up with your dad, tell him... I'm sorry. For Jonas, and my father, and everything..." Amata began. She stopped when Oliver hugged her. Amanda did, too. Butch actually joined in, surprisingly.

"Ugh. I'm not used to this lovey-dovey stuff." The Tunnel Snake complained. All three laughed.

Just before they left, Amata and Butch each presented them with some gifts to see them off. From Amata, she gave them some bottles of water and a good wad of money to buy anything out there, while Butch handed Oliver a Nuka-Cola, a bag of Cheezy Poofs, and a tin of Mentats, the latter from the locker in the Overseer's office. The young man became acutely aware that he hadn't eaten all day. He'd have to ration these Cheezy Poofs with Amanda until they got to that town, Megaton. The scouting report said it was nearby, right?

With a final hug and a wave goodbye, Oliver and his older sister Amanda set off out of the vault, the giant steel door closing shut behind them. Up ahead through the cave was a wooden door, decorated with a few skeletons holding protest signs, begging the Vault 101 dwellers to let them in. Oliver was saddened at how privileged his ancestors had been... but for now, he had to think about the future. Find his dad. Get the answers he needed. And, if possible, return to Vault 101 with him. Hopefully the Overseer would've cooled down by then, right? Right?

**XXXXXXXXXX**

_Oliver and Amanda Carpenter would soon be thrust into a new world they would have to quickly adapt to. They would make a great many enemies and friends. But they would not be alone in their travels._

_A dog that's lost his master. An ex-Raider, retired but not enjoying it. A slave who knows nothing else. A rebel barber with freedom on his mind. A Brotherhood of Steel soldier who's more machine than woman. A ghoul bodyguard who hates his employer. A super mutant with more mind than most. A robot looking for a cause to fight for. A cyberdog they've known all their life. A lawbringer with wisdom to pass on. A motherly woman stuck at a dead end. A child that hasn't been born yet._

_It is these people who Oliver and Amanda Carpenter would come to call allies and friends in their travels. Together, they would surpass insurmountable odds in the name of what is right. They would laugh. They would cry. Maybe... just maybe... they might even love. But most importantly... they would press forward into the annals of history. For the names of Oliver and Amanda Carpenter would be known across the Capital Wasteland in just the coming year. Great change would be brought on by true hearts. But war... War never changes._

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The sun outside was blinding. At first it seemed like nothing more than an ungodly bright light, but once Oliver's eyes adjusted, he found himself standing on a ledge overlooking a wasteland, a nearby sign saying "scenic overlook." Below him was rubble and the ruins of a dilapidated town down the street, but his gaze wasn't on what was below. It was drawn to that huge blue thing up above. What was that thing? The sky? Wow, it was huge... And the sun was so bright. He couldn't help but wonder if living in the cramped halls of the vault all his life had given him agoraphobia, or something... He was pulled out of his reverie by the voice of his sister.

"Knock knock!" she said to him, smiling.

Oliver quirked an eyebrow. "Knock knock?"

"I thought you could use a joke."

Okay, he'd bite. "Who's there?"

"Botany!"

"Botany who?"

"Botany good digs lately? I'm getting sick of these clothes..." Amanda tugged at her ill-fitting jumpsuit, completely impossible to zip up past her overdeveloped chest.

"Guess we can pick you up something new to wear in Megaton... Amata gave us plenty of money..."

"Oh, good! I hate these bloody jumpsuits, really I do!" Amanda cheered.

Amanda ran ahead, Oliver right on her tail, but he felt something hit him over the head, and heard the sound of his older sister screaming before everything went black...

He came to a moment later, but everything was blurry...

"Easy there, girl. Don't make us waste any bullets now." a male voice said.

"Wat one ya wanna take? We only got the one collar left." a different male voice spoke.

"Seriously? Shit, that went fast..."

"This one looks a bit younger, and a prettyboy. Could be worth more."

"Nah, fuck that. Peach sells better than sausage any day of the week. May even get myself a little taste before we hand 'er over to Eulogy."

"Yeah, 'cause that's what the big man wants; yer sloppy seconds."

"Shut up and get the collar on 'er. We're not that far from Paradise Falls. If ya pick up yer god damn feet we may just make it in time for dinner."

Oliver passed out again a moment after that...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Notes

**1:** Sparky belongs to the FO3Phalanx team (though he's called K-9 in the Phalanx mod).

**2:** Amanda belongs to Thefourwings.

**3:** If you take control of the camera using cheat codes during the birth scene, you'll see that Catherine is, in fact, African-American, regardless of selected player race, and even has white hair. James is Caucasian by default.

**4:** "Cheezy Poofs" are an item in Fallout 2. It's very possible Eric Cartman from South Park's favorite snack was named after them. They can be re-added to Fallout 3 using FOOK2 or the "Cheezy Poofs and Rations" mod.

**5:** The "Electronic Lock Pick MK II" is an item from Fallout 2. The improved version of the standard Electronic Lock Pick, it is instead used on electronic locks and card readers, whereas the Lock Pick Set and Expanded Lock Pick Set are used on pin and tumbler locks. They were both replaced with bobby pins in Fallout 3, rather nonsensically so for the electronic locks.


	2. Chapter 1: Not For Nothing

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fallout. Fallout belongs to Bethesda, who purchased the rights from Black Isle. Any plot ideas used from "The Legend of the Wandering Pair from Vault 101" belong to Nave Ninja.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Fallout 3

Ties That Bind

By _Cyberweasel89_

**Chapter 1:** Not for Nothing

**XXXXXXXXXX**

She'd been here a day... She could tell from the clock on her Pip-Boy...

They'd taken all her things... Given her rags to wear... But the one thing they couldn't take was her Pip-Boy, so she still had it to let her keep track of time, play games, and listen to the radio... It kept her from going insane, after being traded around between those two slavers dressed like raiders who kidnapped her the second her brother and her left the vault...

"Psst! Psssst!"

Amanda turned over on her mattress at the sound of that familiar voice. Soft, quiet, it was almost hard to pick up amidst the sound of President Eden's soothing voice and patriotic music.

It was Clover. Since arriving at Paradise Falls, the boss, Eulogy, quickly took a shine to her, and gave her her own pen with a mattress and nothing else. It was lonely, not being able to talk to the other slaves... But Clover made it much less lonely, chatting with her a bit and bringing her extra food.

The girl was Asian, and you would swear she was just twelve or fourteen years old, given her complete lack of any curves in her red Pre-War negligee, but Clover herself said she was eighteen, just a year younger than Amanda's own brother. She didn't seem to have much hair, most of it likely pulled out, but what little she had was white and done with a red ribbon atop her head that matched her negligee in color. She was cute, but after being beaten and raped by Eulogy repeatedly, she was very meek and timid. In fact, Amanda doubted Eulogy even needed that slave collar on her. Still, she had more heart than anyone else in Paradise Falls.

Paradise Falls was the home of the Capital Wasteland's local tribe of slavers. Built out of an old shopping arcade, its original calling of a chain of stores was gutted to serve the purpose of capturing, processing, and selling slaves. The giant figurine of the fat boy that served as the shopping arcade's mascot still stood.

"Clover..." Amanda began, as the girl slipped a Pre-War wrapped sandwich through the gate for her.

"Yes, Miss Amanda?" the girl's tiny voice responded, seeming to be happy to help the older girl.

"Haven't you ever thought of escaping? And where do you get this food you bring me? Are you stealing it?"

The latter question was answered when Clover's stomach made a gurgling sound. So that was it... She was bringing Amanda her own food...

Unwrapping the two-hundred-year-old sandwich, Amanda broke it in half, passing one half through the mesh gate to Clover.

"No, Miss Amanda, I couldn't." Clover insisted.

"No, you need it more than I do, Clover. And just Amanda, okay?"

A light blush creeping to her face, Clover nodded, taking the sandwich half and nibbling on it.

Amanda, on the other hand, tore into her sandwich with wild abandon. Mmm... Ancient lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, and deli meat. It kept well, despite two-hundred years of age. Must've been some advanced shrink-wrapping they did before the Great War. You could find these things all over, actually. They were quickly becoming Amanda's favorite food.

"Um..."

"Yes, Clover?" Amanda asked through a mouthful of sandwich.

"You mentioned you had a brother... A-Are you sure he's coming for you, Miss Amanda?"

The girl nodded, swallowing her bite. "Positive. I know Oliver, and he won't let me down."

Clover gazed down at the ground, a forlorn look on her face. "But... For a boy fresh out of a vault... How could he make it here? Or find a way to get in past the security..."

Amanda sighed. "Just have faith, Clover. I believe in my brother. He'll save me. And heck, he might even save you, too."

Clover said nothing to that, merely gazing down at the ground with a distant look in her brown eyes.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Another day passed... Playing Solitaire on her Pip-Boy was getting old, and she'd probably heard all the messages on Enclave Radio... Though, she had to admit, President Eden's voice was very soothing...

"Hey."

She must be hearing things... There was no way that was the voice she knew all her life...

"Hey..."

No, it couldn't have been her brother...

"Hey!"

Sighing, Amanda finally turned around on her mattress, her eyes widening when she saw who it was.

There he was... Oliver... Still wearing his Vaultsuit and red baseball cap...

"O-Oliver?" Amanda stammered, amazed. "Thank God! How did you find me?  
Her brother just smiled his mysterious smile. "Nevermind. Can you get me out?"

A look of concern crossed Oliver's face, the young man looking his sister up and down.

"I'm in a cage. No, I'm not okay!" she cried, telling what he wanted to ask. "Back at the vault, after they hit you, they put this _thing_ on my neck." She grasped at the uncomfortable collar around her neck. "They walked me this whole way. Said if I tried anything, the collar would blow my head off. Now can you get me out, Ollie?"

Oliver merely nodded, though there was a look of concern on his face.

"Okay. I've arranged for her release."

Amanda didn't recognize that voice, deep and gravelly... She heard heavy footsteps approaching, and when she looked a man she never met before stood behind and next to her brother.

He was tall at six feet, three inches, Caucasian, with a middle-aged, chiseled face, a distinct five-o-clock shadow covering his chin and above his lip, brown eyes that seemed almost red.

He was wearing some sort of brown duster like a cowboy would wear, as well as a similar cowboy hat, though a black eyepatch covered his left eye. He wore gray pants under his duster, brown boots on his feet and brown fingerless gloves on his hands. On his back was a hunting rifle, while spiked knuckledusters were worn on his hands, over the gloves.

Who was this man? Did he lead Oliver here, and help him get her out? And if he did... why did he do it?

The man produced a key from his duster's pocket, unlocking the gate to Amanda's pen, then produced another key and unlocked her slave collar, which fell to the ground.

"Let's get out of here..." Oliver said, turning to leave.

"Wait!" Amanda cried. Both turned to look at her. "We can't leave Clover! She was the only one here who was nice to me! Please, we have to save her from this place!"

The mysterious cowboy man sighed, a deep, gravelly sigh. "Look, we don't have time to save everyone in this hellhole, Miss. Let's just-"

"Okay."

Both the cowboy man and Amanda were surprised to hear Oliver say that. When Amanda looked, he had a small smile on his face. His left hand raised, giving his sister a thumbs up.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The three of them walked through Paradise Falls, heading for the building clearly marked as 'Eulogy's Pad.' Amanda hugged her arms as they walked, but a hand on her should comforted her. She looked to see it was her brother, a concerned look on his normally serene face.

"You okay?"

It was so rare to hear him speak... She could tell he was truly worried. "Some nights, they'd pull out two slaves and make them fight to the death while they bet on the winner..." She shuddered. "I had to watch from Eulogy's balcony... It was terrible..."

Oliver nodded, though his face didn't change from his concerned expression. The cowboy man opened the door to Eulogy's Pad, and inside they found a man dressed like a pimp, whipping Clover with a cane while an African-American woman also in a red negligee and slave collar watched, bored.

"Say it to me, bitch! Say it to me!"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Eulogy!"

"No, say it properly, bitch!"

"I'm so sorry, Daddy, sir!"

"Good bitch."

When Eulogy set his cane down, Oliver approached him, Amanda hanging back behind the cowboy man.

"You must be our prospective customer. I do hope Paradise Falls can accommodate your needs." Eulogy began, surprisingly calm despite having just beaten a slave. "We make no judgments, no assumptions. We understand that it's a harsh world out there, and you do what you must to make it. Now, was there something specific you were interested in?"

Oliver stood his ground, seeming his usual laid-back, mellow self. He placed his hands in his vaultsuit's pockets, gazing the slave master up and down.

"Lookin' to buy..." he said, his voice low and soft.

"Well then, you and I are a perfect fit. You want to buy slaves, and I want to sell them. There are some prime specimens out there. Have you had a chance to look them over? You might notice there are some kids out there. Not something you see every day. A good long-term investment."

"Bodyguard..."

Bodyguard? Why would Oliver want a bodyguard? They should be buying Clover!

"Gotta be careful, using a slave as a bodyguard. Most aren't exactly motivated to keep you alive, you know what I mean? You're in luck! It turns out my girl Clover is just the right little package for you."

Wait... Now she saw what he was doing. Oliver was making Eulogy think selling Clover was his own idea... But how was Clover a bodyguard? And assuming she was, how did Oliver know?

"Oh?" Oliver inquired, quirking an eyebrow. "Don't you need your bodyguard?"

"Have you seen this place? I've got all the guards a body would ever need. Even a body as fabulous as mine."

"Hmmm... Why is she so special?"

"I'll tell you why... Because Clover is the craziest girl I've ever seen. And I'm an expert on crazy girls. Crazy in a fight, crazy in the sack, crazy every which way but loose. But most of all, she's crazy afraid of whoever's holdin' her leash. And for the low, low price of one thousand caps, Miss Clover can be crazy afraid... of you."

"Crazy? Take her off your hands... Only for five-hundred, though..."

"I ought to sic Clover on you, just to show who's boss. But you're right. I'm gettin' tired of beating her every day, and she doesn't have much in the way of curves. To be honest, she makes the other girls nervous. And when they're nervous, I'm nervous. So go ahead and have fun with Clover. She's your problem now!"

Oliver looked to the cowboy man, who grumbled. He pulled off his hat, revealing he was bald, and reached in to remove a bag of bottle caps. He handed it to Eulogy.

"Pleasure doing business with you. Clover!" The girl jumped to her feet. "I'm done with you. This kid's your new master now."

Walking over to Eulogy, the man reached into his pocket and produced a ring of keys. He unlocked Clover's collar, letting it fall to the floor, then walked away, the other slave dressed like Clover in tow.

Clover stood before Oliver, rubbing her palms together at her waist and gazing down at the floor.

"Um... M-My name's Clover... I g-guess you're the new master in my life..."

Oliver merely said nothing, staring her down, his serene eyes seeming to bore right through her and stare into her soul. Clover shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, almost seeming to bunch up to make herself smaller.

"Oliver, don't just say nothing! You're scaring h-"

To Amanda's surprise, Oliver bent down and wrapped the shorter girl in a tight, comforting hug.

"'sokay... Everything's okay now..." he whispered into her ear. The girl blushed, not sure what to make of this...

Oliver stood, then turned to Amanda and the cowboy man. "Okay... now we save those kids..."

"Son, I hate to tell you this, but I'm all out of caps, let alone the thousands it would take to buy all three of these kids. Your sister and this girl cleaned me out." The man said in his deep, gravelly voice. "Let's hope you have a plan."

"No... But I think those kids might..." Oliver explained, a mysterious smile on his face.

Amanda could only look at him in confusion.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Well, so far, the plan was going great. Amanda rewired an electrical box near the dining area when no one was looking, giving the kids control over their slave collars through a terminal in their pen. Malcolm kept watch over the kids' pen with Clover, while Oliver had somehow convinced Crimson, Eulogy's other bodyguard, to invite the only guard near the pens at midnight away for some fun. Amanda wasn't sure how he did it, since all Oliver would do when she asked was smile and shrug. However, they hit a small snag, now...

"No! I'm not leaving while they've still got Rory locked up! He's the only person here that's been nice to me! I'm not just gonna leave him like that!"

"Ugh! We gotta get you outta here, kid!" the cowboy guy growled.

Oliver stuck his arm out to stop his advance. He looked to the girl, Penny, kneeling down so he was at her level. He placed his hand on her shoulder, a small smile on his face, as he nodded to her.

"You'll help? Oh, thank you! Ya have to get Rory out of the Box! He's locked in there, and the guards have the key! I think Forty has one, I don't know where the other is. Probably the boss guy has it, or it's in his room. You find the key, you can get Rory out, and then I'll leave."

Amanda smiled at her brother. Even _she_ might not have done this... Oliver was a real softy. Sometimes she had to wonder which one of them was the real older sibling...

Oliver stood up, turning to Amanda, Clover, and the cowboy guy.

"Stay here. I'll handle this."

"Wait! You're not planning on stealing that key, are you? Can't I just pick the lock on this Box?" Amanda offered.

"No need. Already have it."

To Amanda's surprise, Oliver pulled a key out of his vaultsuit pocket.

"But, where did you-"

"Forty set it on the table when he went to have fun with Crimson. Grabbed it."

Amanda crossed her arms under her hefty breasts, smiling. "Wow, little brother... You thought of everything."

Oliver just shrugged.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The Box, as it turned out, was just an old Pulowski Preservation Shelter that was used to lock up unruly slaves. Inside it he found a man in a hoodie, who stood up and turned around when he heard the door open.

"Who the hell are you?" the man asked, confused.

"Here to set you free..." Oliver explained.

"What? Are you kidding me? This is another one of Forty's tricks, isn't it? Well I'm not falling for it.

"Penny asked me to get you out of here..." Oliver continued.

"She did? Is she safe? Can I see her?"

"You don't leave, Penny won't leave... Got it?"

That gave Rory pause. "No... No, I want Penny to be safe. She shouldn't be having second thoughts just because of me. Just make sure you take care of her. I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to her, or her friends. So... What do we do now?"

"Follow me... Stay low... Stick to the shadows..."

Rory only nodded, ducking behind Oliver and following close behind.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

When Oliver ran up to them, still waiting in the child slave pens, Amanda assumed he had failed.

"Is Rory safe yet?" Penny asked.

Oliver merely nodded, smiling his small, mysterious smile. Wow, Amanda didn't think he could pull that off.

"You saved him? Really? Thank you so much! I'll make it up to you somehow, I promise! Now I have to get out. Don't follow me. You get out the normal way. We'll meet outside."

Penny ran off, heading to the sewer grate through the bathroom. Oliver turned to Amanda, Clover, and the cowboy guy, nodding.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"Well, I guess that's it. Thanks for getting us out of there, mungos." Sammy, the apparent leader of the three, said to the group of four. "We're going back home now. You ever come out that way, you stop and say hi. I'll tell mayor not to shoot you, okay?"

Oliver nodded, waving as the three kids ran off to the southwest.

The cowboy guy watched, an awkward smile on his face. It was a true smile, but he just wasn't used to smiling... Maybe... Just maybe... He was right about this kid. Maybe he really was just what the wasteland needed. The last, best hope for humanity...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The walk back to... Actually, Amanda wasn't sure where they were going, but it seemed they were headed southeast... was awkward. Clover hung in the back, with a sawed-off shotgun at her right hip and some sort of sword at her left. The cowboy guy was at the front, leading them, his hunting rifle drawn and held across his body in perfect trigger discipline. Amanda walked in the center, next to her brother, gazing down at the ground.

"You hanging in there?"

She looked up, surprised to have heard her brother speak. Her gaze was directed back down at the ground, hugging her arms. "I didn't even get the worst of it... Eulogy took a... liking to me. I suppose I should count myself lucky."

"I'll make them pay..."

Amanda looked up at her brother in surprise. To think of revenge... That hadn't crossed her mind. And she never thought it was something her brother would ever think of.

"Don't get any crazy hero ideas in your head. There are too many of them... and too many innocents to catch a stray bullet. Relatively speaking, I guess this place is nothing. I've heard there's a whole city to the north full of slaves... I hope it's just a story told to scare people..."

"Never underestimate the cruelty of others..."

Those words surprised Amanda. Her brother wasn't one to have such dark thoughts... "That's such a terrible thought, but worse is that you're probably right..."

She felt a hand placed on her shoulder, belonging to her younger brother, a small smile on his face. "But never underestimate the kindness of others, either..."

With those reassuring words, Amanda nodded, her steps reinvigorated.

"Hey... Knock knock!"

"Seriously?"

"Knock knock!" she persisted.

"Who's there?"

"Sez."

"Sez who?"

"Says me, that's who!"

Oliver chuckled, bringing his hand to his forehead as he shook it.

Smiling to herself at getting her brother to laugh, Amanda ran ahead, to talk to the odd guy dressed like a cowboy.

"Hey, so... What's your story?"

"Hm?" the man looked at her out of the corner of his eye, not turning to face her as he walked. "My name's Malcolm. I've been in Megaton on security detail for, hm... I'd say about four months now. Before that I was helping with security for Rivet City, but Lucas Simms called me out on a personal favor to help with the town's protection, but it's slow out there. It's boring in that giant tin can. Slower than Rivet City was. So I often find myself leaving the town to patrol around it. I was just outside Springvale near Vault 101 when I found your brother chewing on some human meat given to him by some cannibal hunters. Put a bullet through each of their heads, and your brother told me his story. I had about two thousand caps to spare from my last few bounties and working in Megaton, so I thought I'd give him a hand and rescue you. Turned out to be more than I bargained for, though. What about you? Where are you from, what are you up to?"

"Well, I'm from, err... Vault 101. My brother and I are looking for our dad, and I guess we'll figure it out from there."

"Good enough for me. Guess I'll take you two to Megaton and drop you off there. But what about her?"

"Her... who?"

"That girl..."

Malcolm gestured with his head behind them, where Clover was walking silently with her head down. Wow, Amanda actually forgot she was there.

"Well, my brother gave her her freedom. Not sure why she's following us..."

"Maybe you should tell her that, then..." Malcolm suggested.

Nodding, Amanda slowed her pace until she was walking beside Clover. "Hey, Clover?"

The slave jumped, turning to look up at the much taller girl.

"Um... I'm sorry, Miss Amanda... Master Oliver hasn't said much to me, so I'm a bit confused... I'll do my best to protect him as his bodyguard, and Mr. Eulogy says I give great head..."

Amanda cringed. "Clover, I don't think you seem to get it... My brother didn't purchase you as his slave or bodyguard. He bought your freedom." Clover's eyes widened. "You can stay with us for a while, until you figure out what you want to do... But your life is yours to control now, Clover. You're free now."

Clover gazed down at the ground, likely full of new emotions now that she realized the situation she was in...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

When they neared a sign with an arrow pointing to Megaton, Amanda and Oliver noticed a bunch of tents, trailers, and stalls set up around a tower of scrap metal. There were also fenced-in pens with various crops, and a few with two-headed cows, long sheep with multiple sets of legs, pigs that looked like they had rat parts, and chickens with lizard scales instead of feathers.

"What are those?" Oliver asked.

Malcolm perked, following Oliver's gaze to the livestock.

"Post-Apocalyptic livestock, son. The two-headed cows are Brahmin. Good for meat and beasts of burden, and the milk they give heals radiation poisoning. The pig things are pig rats, really only good for meat like bacon. Centisheep aren't good for much more than meat and wool, but wasteland penguins are great for good meat and good eggs. You haven't lived 'til you've had a wasteland omelet."

"They look more like lizards than penguins..."

"Yeah, the Great War devolved what used to be chickens back down to the lizard scales of their far ancestors, you could say. Aside from that, we mostly rely on Pre-War foods and things we catch or can grow in this wasteland. Mutfruit and crunchy mutfruit are our top crops, but we also get punga fruits shipped from Point Lookout that help heal radiation poisoning as well."

"Interesting..." Oliver mused.

"Please, God... So thirsty..."

As they approached the main gate to the towering heap of scrap metal called Megaton, Oliver couldn't help but notice a man nearby, face sunburned and dressed in rags. He walked over, standing before the man.

"Can you help me? I need water... Purified water... Please..." he begged.

Oliver set his backpack on the ground, rummaging through it. "Will any water do?"

"I've been drinking this irradiated shit and I... I can't do it. I just throw it up now. I need purified water, please!"

"Here ya go."

Oliver tossed him a plastic bottle of clear, pure water, which the man fumbled with, but caught.

"You mean... you don't want anything for it? I don't have any money or anything... I can just have... I can just have it? For free?"

Oliver only nodded. The man unscrewed the cap with shaking hands, bringing the mouth of the bottle to his lips and taking big, eager gulps.

"Try to ration that until I step outside town again. Have more for you then."

"My... Thank you. Thank you so much, you've saved my life, bless you!" the man nearly sobbed.

Oliver returned to his three companions, Malcolm giving him a stern look.

"Son... Water is pretty precious out here. You can't just give it away like that..."

"I know..." was Oliver's response. "But... doesn't matter. Needed it more than I did."

"Oliver... Maybe in your vault, clean water is easy to find. But out here, it's always dirty, cloudy, tastes nasty, and is highly irradiated. Clean water is as good as gold out here. What you just did... That wasn't worth dying of thirst later."

Oliver shook his head, his white locks swaying back and forth before settling in their usual positions of partly covering his eyes. "It's worth it. It's always worth it."

"But you did it for nothing!"

"Not for nothing. Never for nothing."

Amanda smiled, knowing her brother far too well. She looked over at Clover, who was gazing at Oliver with a wide-eyed look. She... probably needed to see that to see just what kind of person the man who bought her freedom really was.

"Hoooo weeeee! Lookit you! Now, I haven't seen one of those vault jumpsuits in, wow, a _long_ time. Pretty damn good condition, too!"

The group looked to see a man in an eyepatch and head wrap standing by another man with a pack Brahmin and two guards. He waved them over. "Name's Billy Creel. You call me Billy, all right? I know Megaton looks more like a boneyard than a town, but it ain't all bad."

"Hello, Billy. I'm Amanda, and this is my brother Oliver. That's Clover, and that's-"

"I know that guy. Been here a while. Howdy there, Malcolm."

"Hello there, Billy. Tradin' in some scrap with Crow, I see."

"Yep, it's how I make my living. I used to ride with these guys, so they cut me some good deals. Helps keep the town supplied. So, you come from a vault?"

"Well, my brother and I did, yes. We just left about three days ago."

"Three days ago? Wow! Fresh out, huh?"

"Welcome, welcome! My name is Crow, and I travel the land offering vestments of protection. And you are fortunate I found you in time! You bear the look of one who is haunted. But I am proud to say that my wares can protect you from even the cruel claws of death itself."

"Aw, quit with your sales pitch, Crow. They don't wanna hear it. And I doubt they wanna buy any armor or fancy outfits."

Oliver stepped forward, reaching into his backpack and removing a wad of dollar bills.

"Hang on... My sister wanted some new clothes..." Oliver pointed out.

Billy laughed at that. "That Pre-War money is only good for toilet paper these days, son. We use bottle caps for currency now."

"Oh." Oliver put the money away, trading it for the bag of bottle caps he found in his father's office.

Billy's eyes bulged at the sight of the bag. "Whoa! That looks like about three-hundred bottle caps! Got anythin' else to trade with?"

Shrugging, Oliver set his backpack on the ground, removing a baseball.

"Well, shoot, that's just perfect! I'll buy it from ya for ten caps!"

Oliver quirked an eyebrow. "You will?" Amanda asked.

"You bet! Got a mitt to go with it? I'm always lookin' for new toys for Maggie."

Oliver rummaged around in his bag for the mitt, while Amanda crossed her arms and tilted her head to the side. "Who's Maggie?"

"Maggie's nine, sweetest little girl you'd ever care to meet. We take care of each other. I ain't never had a daughter, but if I did, I'd want her to be Maggie. I took her in when her parents got killed by Raiders. That was two years ago. It was a pretty bad scene. Small settlement up north. I'd stopped in to trade some salvage, and the whole place had been wiped out. I found Maggie hiding under a bed, in the same room where her parents had been butchered. We've been together ever since."

Oliver stood, handing the baseball and mitt to Billy.

"Well, shoot, thanks! How about... thirty caps for the set?"

"No need. Keep your caps."

"S-Seriously, amigo?"

"Anything to see a little girl smile."

"Oliver, was it? I just offer to buy something from you, and you're giving it to me for nothing?"

"Not for nothing. Never for nothing." the young man repeated from earlier.

Billy Creel looked down at the baseball and mitt in his hands, feeling a warmth stirring in his chest that he normally only felt when telling Maggie bedtime stories and watching her fall asleep for the night...

Oliver turned to Crow. "Now... Got anything practical for my sister, and something pretty for Clover?"

Crow chuckled, walking over to his pack Brahmin. "How about what I call a mercenary grunt outfit for your sister and a Pre-War spring dress for young Clover over there?"

"Deal..."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Megaton was much bigger on the inside than the outer walls would have indicated. The walls concealed a steep slope of a crater, with houses built from all kinds of scrap piled on top of each other and accessible through ramps and walkways. It seemed to be made of any pieces of metal possible, but Oliver was sure he saw plenty of airplane parts...

"Well I'll be damned! You're from that vault, Vault 101! Ha ha ha ha! I ain't seen one of those jumpsuits in a long time!" a man said to them, approaching from down a hill. He was dressed just like Malcolm, except he had a sheriff's badge on his chest and had a Chinese assault rifle strapped to his back. "Name's Lucas Simms. Town sheriff, and mayor too, when the need arises. I don't know why, but I like you, boy! Something tells me you're all right. So welcome to Megaton. Just holler if you need something."

"Oliver Carpenter... Nice town you have here, Sheriff... Pleasure to meet you..."

"Friendly _and_ well-mannered? I think we're gonna get along just fine. You treat my people nice and you're welcome to stay as long as you'd like."

"Right... Not to worry about a thing, Sheriff..."

"I'm glad we understand each other. Now, is there something I can help you with?"

"Sister and I are looking for our father... Wears a Pip-Boy like us... Seen him?"

"Nope. Sorry. I got enough fires to put out in this place that I don't have time to keep tabs on every visitor. I'd ask around town."

Amanda sighed... Maybe dad really _hadn't_ been here, and this was just a dead end...

"So, why is the town called Megaton?" Oliver continued, undeterred by the sheriff's answer.

"The town's named after the bomb that's sitting in the middle of it. It hasn't gone off... yet." He explained.

"What? Who would build a town around a bomb? That's crazy!" Amanda exclaimed, but Oliver shot her a look. She knew that look... That 'you need more tact' look...

"It's not like the place was put up overnight. Megaton's been here for decades, been growing and growing ever since. Started out as a small settlement of people trying to get into Vault 101. When they were denied, they stuck around here. Some of 'em started worshippin' the thing like a god. Now we've got a whole goddamn church. They're nuts, no doubt, but mostly harmless. By now, most people don't give a shit. They figure if it ain't gone off by now, it never will. I respectfully disagree."

"Could see about disarming that bomb for you..."

What? But Oliver's expertise was medicine and science, not mechanics or explosi- Oh, no... Did he seriously expect her to tinker with a live atomic bomb?

"Oh, all right. Fine. But listen here. Just take a look at it first. Go easy. If you get the job done, there'll be one hundred caps in it for you."

"Nah, don't need the caps... Couldn't stand to see everyone here die..."

Everyone, Amanda, Lucas Simms, Malcolm, even Clover looked at Oliver in shock. When the sheriff recovered, he chuckled nervously.

"Well, that's... mighty decent of you. Just don't, you know... go blowin' us up, all right?"

Amanda couldn't help but smile. Trust in her brother's kind heart to screw them out of some serious cash...

"Now that we're helping you, maybe you can help us... Looking for our father..." Oliver continued.

"Well, come to think of it, I do remember a stranger coming through here. Had a look in his eye. You know the kind a man gets when he's got a purpose. Spent some time up in the saloon. Might want to check with Moriarty. Just watch yourself. That man's trouble."

Amanda's face brightened, overjoyed. Yes! A lead on Dad!

Clover's stomach growling, however, brought Amanda out of her happy moment.

"Say, Sheriff... Know a place we can get something to eat?" Oliver asked.

"Sure do. Down the hill, by the bomb, is the Brass Lantern, right across from the clinic. Just make sure you brought money. Ha ha ha!"

"I'll lead 'em there. Don't you worry, Simms." Malcolm assured the sheriff, who gave the man a simple nod of acknowledgement.

Malcolm led them down the hill, to where an outdoor café was set up, a woman in a yellow jumpsuit manning the counter. The four of them took a seat, Oliver sitting next to a man in a head wrap and trimmed-down leather armor, an assault rifle strapped to his back.

"Now, I _know_ I've never seen you in Megaton before. Let me guess, just passing through, right? We get people trying to settle down here all the time."

"My brother and I just got out of Vault 101 nearby, actually."

The man sitting nearby grumbled something under his breath.

"Well, I'll be! Welcome to the surface world, then. Anyway, if you're hungry, you came to the right place. What can I get you?"

Amanda nudged Clover next to her, who looked up in alarm. "What do you want, Clover?" she asked.

"Um... C-Crispy squirrel bits and some Brahmin milk, p-please?"

Oliver quirked an eyebrow. "Squirrel?"

"They're easier to catch than those crafty iguanas, let me tell you." The woman behind the counter assured him.

"Cheezy poofs and a Nuka-Cola, please..." Oliver requested.

"Uh... Get me a Pre-War wrapped sandwich and a Sunset Sarsaparilla." Those sandwiches really were getting on her mind...

"Some canned meat hash and a whiskey for me, thanks." Malcolm ordered.

"You got it!" Jenny turned around and to grab their food and drinks, as well as place an order inside for the squirrel bits and hash.

"What can you tell me about Megaton, Miss...?" Amanda trailed off, not knowing the woman's name.

"Jenny. Jenny Stahl. Some people hate this place, but I guess that's their right. What the hell do they want out of life? Food, shelter, and safety. Works for me."

The man sitting next to Oliver grumbled something again.

"What's the word around town?" Amanda asked.

"I ain't heard much. Truth be told, I don't really ever leave the Lantern. Too much work, too few hours in the day, y'know?"

The man nearby grumbled something yet again, this time louder.

"You have something to say, Jericho?" Jenny asked, turning to him and placing her hands on her hips.

"Oh, look. Another one of your pampered vault assholes." The man, Jericho, began, getting up from his seat to stand over Oliver and Amanda. "Look here, vault asshole... I don't like you. Stay clear of me and we'll have no trouble."

Amanda stood, her hands on her hips and glaring at the man. He looked Hispanic, middle-aged, with a goatee around his mouth.

"Did I miss something? What's your problem with my brother and I?"

"You're from the outside, and I've lived too much of my life out there to trust every jackass nobody that wanders in from the wasteland."

"Lay off it, Jericho! And stay the fuck away from my sister!"

Out from the Brass Lantern walked a man in a leather jacket and a man in a dirty gray T-shirt, the latter with a beard. They all had red hair matching Jenny's.

"Well, goddamn! You're new, right? I've got to admit, the outfit's a little weird, but that's okay. That's okay. Name's Leo Stahl. It's a pleasure!" the man with the beard greeted, oddly cheerful.

"Andy Stahl. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to balance our books." He turned and walked back inside, seeming very annoyed.

Jericho had absconded at the sight of Jenny Stahl's brothers, but Leo placed their hash and squirrel bits down before giving them a wink and retreating back inside.

Jenny laughed nervously, rubbing the back of her head. "Sorry about that. Never boring in Megaton. My brothers are a bit protective of me, especially around Jericho."

Amanda giggled. "I know how brothers can be, Miss Stahl." She winked at her.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

After eating, it was agreed that they'd split up and explore the town. Malcolm, however, decided to stay with Clover so she could eat some more at the Brass Lantern, saying he'd find some way to pay for her meals. Amanda decided to do some exploring, while Oliver just went off on his own, though Amanda saw him heading for the clinic.

First thing, she stopped by a man who seemed to be preaching in front of the atomic bomb. He turned around to face her when she drew near.

"Who have we here? Could it be? A new addition to our humble little community? Dear child, welcome! Welcome to Megaton! I am Confessor Cromwell, prophet of Atom and father of the undying Glow. Please child, come to the church any time. Any time at all!"

"Church? Atom?" Amanda inquired, tilting her head a little.

"Yes! The Church of Atom caters to the wounds of the souls of all. You may ask me anything you like."

"What does your church believe?"

"The Church of the Children of Atom is based on the idea that each single atomic mass in all of creation contains within it an entire universe. When that atomic mass is split, a single universe divides and becomes two, thus signifying the single greatest act of Atom's creation. Occasionally, a divine event occurs, and trillions upon trillions of new universes are created. The last such event took place here, two-hundred years ago. Where most of the lost children of Atom see that event as simple war and devastation, we see creation and unification in Atom's Glow."

"So you worship this bomb, Confessor?"

"Those who were called to Atom during the Great Division were very fortunate. They were permitted to aid in the process of Atom's creation. We seek the same, both in symbol and in fact, and the 'bomb' as you call it, represents Atom's capacity for creation. We kneel before it and ask that Atom call us to aid him. We pray that out of our meager bodies, he will create new life."

"That's actually very beautiful, Confessor. Thank you for sharing that with me."

"Thank you, my child. You're quite open-minded for someone so new to town."

"Well, my younger brother taught me to be tactful, I guess."

"Bless you, child. And please, take this..." The Confessor reached under his podium and handed Amanda a pamphlet.

"Oh, thank you." She said, taking it and scanning it into her Pip-Boy.

"You're quite welcome, my child."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"I'm Doc Church, and I run this clinic. Now, before you go askin' me for help, you better know the rules. Rule one, don't bother me. If you _do_ bother me you better be damn near dead. I'm busy enough takin' care of people I actually like. Follow my rule, I'll keep you patched up, I'll keep gettin' paid, and we'll get along just fine."

Oliver wanted to check out the town's clinic, being an aspiring doctor himself. He had to admit, it was kind of dirty and primitive, but he guessed it was hard to compare to a vault's clinic out here. He stood in front of where the doctor sat at a reception table, looking him over with a serene expression. He had a theory to test, but he had to play it delicately...

"Need something to help me concentrate, doc..." Oliver began.

"Great. Another junkie... In case you haven't noticed, this is a clinic, not a candy store. And I've got work to do."

"As I thought. You have someone in town with a drug habit..." Oliver mused, a small smile on his face. "Who is it?"

"I'm afraid that goes against patient-doctor confidentiality."

Oliver placed his hand on his chest. "You can trust me. I'm a doctor, myself."

"Oh, yeah, sure. Then tell me-"

Oliver glanced through the door just behind him.

"That patient in the first bed is suffering from a mixture of radiation poisoning and calcium deficiency, both from not drinking enough Brahmin milk... I recommend some RadAway in his arm intravenously, and give him a lot of Brahmin cheese and yogurt... He should be up and about in a few weeks... The second is suffering an allergic reaction to a giant ant bite on his thigh... Disinfect the wound and give him some epinephrine and he should be fine... The third sprained his ankle, which is a simple enough procedure I don't need to go into much detail."

Doc Church's jaw dropped. "Son, you're not just a doctor yourself... You're a better doctor than me. They give you serious medical training in that vault of yours?"

Oliver only smiled.

"All right. I suppose someone with medical training has to have at least a bit of compassion. And maybe you can talk some sense into the boy."

"Think I know who it is, but might as well tell me, Doctor."

Doc Church sighed. "Leo Stahl... That boy got hisself a problem with Jet. I've caught him in here two to three times tryin' to steal what I keep around for anesthetic. Not even his own family knows it. He goes up to the water treatment plant at night to get high. I dunno... I can't reach him... Maybe you can."

Oliver only smiled again. He was right...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Amanda was exploring Megaton when she stumbled upon the water purification plant. Surely her engineering skills would come in handy here, right?

"Anything I can do to help, Mr. Walter?"

"Well, it's no secret that the ol' water treatment plant is on its last legs. And I'm the only one in town that can keep the damn thing running. I spend so much time in the plant that I can't take care of the leaks that keep springing up in the pipes around town. Now, I don't expect much from strangers, but if you've got the knowhow, I need someone to hunt down and repair those leaks."

"How many leaks are there, Mr. Walter?"

"From the pressure in the plant, my guess is that there are three of 'em scattered around town. Check along the pipes and the valves, but they might be a bit tricky to spot."

"Just curious, why can't you do this yourself?"

"I could, but I can't hunt for leaks all damn day! That rust bucket purifier would fall apart without me around to plug it up. The only break I get is when I shut the thing off for the night, and I can't look for leaks when the water isn't running."

"Consider it done, Mr. Walter."

"I hope you can help. If folks knew how bad it was gettin' up here, well... I don't know what would happen."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"Heya! How's it going?"

"Understand you have quite a chem habit..." Oliver decided he'd cut straight to the chase, cornering him in the Brass Lantern.

"Dammit! Who told you- I mean, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"'tsokay. Wanna help." He offered.

"Help? What's to help? So I'm a junkie, big fucking deal. It's not like I'm hurting anyone."

"Hurting your family, Leo. Jenny and Andy care about you." Straight for the kill.

Leo's resolution faltered. It likely hadn't dawned on him that he was hurting his brother and sister, the two people he held most dear to him. "I... I guess you're right. I have to tell them about my problem, don't I?"

"Could tell them for you..."

"No. Thanks, but no. I got myself into this problem, I need to get myself out. I'll figure something out. Look, I want to thank you for your help. I guess it took a complete stranger to show me what an ass I've been. Take this key, it's to my private stash in the water treatment plant. Just get rid of the stuff. Burn it, sell it, I don't care what happens to it."

Leo reached into his pocket, producing a key that he handed to Oliver.

"Not to worry, Leo." He told him.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"I fixed the pipes."

She did. It was a simple matter of tightening their valves and joints with a wrench, easy for someone with her skills in mechanics.

"Well, I'll be! The pressure's up in the plant! It looks like all the leaks have been fixed! Thank you, stranger. Thank you!"

"No problem, Walter."

"But listen, it's only a matter of time before they burst again, and someone like you might not be around to fix 'em. I'll make you a deal."

"Oh?"

"I'll give you caps for any scrap metal you can bring me. You'll find it all over the place out there in the wastes. If I have a steady supply of scrap, I can keep the plant running and the pipes should be just fine. We got a deal?"

"Deal, Walter. I'll bring you any scrap and parts I find."

"Good! This just keeps looking better!" He walked back into the office, returning with some bottlecaps. It looked like there was two-hundred that he handed her. "Those parts will keep this place running and the town in fresh water. Hurry back as soon as you find some!"

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The siblings met back at the Brass Lantern to find several empty bowls and plates collected on the counter of the stand.

"Wow, Clover, did you eat all of this?" Amanda exclaimed.

The slave girl only blushed, her mouth full of food.

"Where's Malcolm?" Oliver asked, looking about.

"Didn't have enough to pay for everything, so he's washing some dishes. I told him it was on the house once I heard this poor girl's story, but he insisted."

"Wow, what a nice fellow." Amanda mused.

"Not really. He's lived here a few months now, and he's normally kind of surly." Jenny corrected. "When he offered to do some dishes to pay for Clover's bill, I told him it wasn't necessary, that he'd be doing it for nothing, and he said it wasn't for nothing, and never is."

A small smile came to Oliver's lips.

Malcolm soon exited the Brass Lantern, drying his hands of dishwater.

"So, what did you two do while Clover and I were here?" he asked.

"I helped fix the pipes for the water purifier around town." Amanda chirped happily.

"I helped a drug addict kick his habit..."

Amanda and Malcolm's jaws dropped. Clover's eyes widened, while Jenny quirked an eyebrow.

"Wow, you have me beat, little brother." Amanda chuckled.

"Well, I guess that's enough exploring Megaton for you two. Why don't you go see Moriarty at the Saloon for information about your father."

Oliver only nodded, his expression blank.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Oliver and Amanda walked into Moriarty's Saloon to find a man that looked like a corpse pounding on a radio, and a woman in a cleavage-baring outfit walking around holding a lit cigarette.

"Graaah! C'mon, you piece of junk! Every day it's the same thing." the necrotic man grumbled.

"I told you, Gob, it ain't the radio. The Enclave station comes in fine. It's Galaxy News, their signal's been shit lately." the woman explained.

"Work! Come on. Work! Stupid radio. Son of a bitch. Goddamn radio! Wait… is that… Dammit!"

"Just give it up, Gob. You're not going to get anything."

Oliver immediately went straight for the bar, while Amanda hung back, looking around the dimly-lit, smelly establishment. It… brought back so many memories. She didn't remember this place, but she remembered the smell. Cheap alcohol, cigarette smoke, etc...

Gob turned away from the radio when a real prettyboy human in a vault suit came to sit on the stool in front of him, his face blank. Hm. Must've been fresh out of the Vault. As per most people who'd never seen a ghoul before, he'd likely freak out when he noticed what it was he was talking to. Gob figured he might as well get it over with, maybe even try to have some fun with it.

"Hey, smoothskin. Do you need something? A drink, maybe? Anything? Anything at all?"

Sure enough, the boy, likely no older than nineteen looked up at the mention of the ghoul nickname for non-ghouls, but when his serene hazel eyes gazed upon Gob... Nothing.

No disgust. No fear. Hell, not even a look of sympathy. He was looking at him as if... he was a person, maybe? The young man shook his head, saying nothing.

"Wait... Y-You're not gonna hit me? Yell at me? Not even berate me a little bit?"

The young man shrugged. "Wasn't planning on it." he said, his voice mellow and smooth.

Gob was... genuinely surprised. Generally, most of the people in this town at least looked at him with sympathy, if not fear or disgust. But this kid, this Vaultie fresh out of a world of isolated perfection... Was looking at him like he was just another person.

"Well, now... That's... a surprise."

The young man quirked an eyebrow.

"I'm used to every asshole smoothskin in this town givin' me shit just 'cause I look like a corpse. It's... really nice to see that there are a few worthwhile people around here. Listen... Moriarty'd have my head if he caught me sellin' at a discount, but for you, I'll risk it. What can I get you?"

Shrugging, the young man reached into a side pouch of his backpack and laid a few bottlecaps on the table. "Rum and Nuka, please."

"You got it, smoothskin. Name's Gob."

Gob turned around and grabbed a bottle of Nuka-Cola and a bottle of Roentgen Rum, which he began to mix.

"Oliver Carpenter. Where did you come from?"

The voice was so soft that Gob almost didn't hear it over the clinking of glasses and stirrers as he mixed the boy's drink. Gob answered him over his shoulder.

"A place called Underworld. It's a ghoul city down in D.C. I set off up here to find adventure and fortune and, well... I found this place. I'm sort of stuck here. Colin says that I can't leave until I pay off my debt to him. Of course, he charges me room and board, too. If you ever get to Underworld, tell Carol that I said hi."

Gob set the drink in front of the young man, who took it and gave it a gingerly sip. He glanced over at the still static-emitting radio, gesturing at it with a nod of his head.

"Oh, Galaxy News Radio? Mister Moriarty says we can keep it on. It's a good radio station. I like hearin' the DJ, Three Dog, and how he's helpin' to fight the Good Fight." The ghoul sighed. "If only I was a part of that instead of bein' stuck in this dive."

The young man gave his drink another sip. "Looking for my father. Wears a Pip-Boy like me. Seen him, maybe?"

"Oh yeah! I do remember a guy like that! Honestly, I usually keep my head down. I tend to get smacked around if I look customers in the eyes. But talk to Moriarty, he'll know more."

"Thank you, Gob."

"Don't mention it. Now I better get back to work, or I'll be answering to Moriarty, too."

Amanda, meanwhile, turned her attention to the redheaded woman in the low-cut outfit.

"Yeah?" the woman asked from where she was leaning against a wall, smoking a cigarette.

"Hi! I'm Amanda Carpenter, and I just escaped from Vault 101 with my brother Oliver."

"Nova. I'm the whore around here."

Amanda cringed at that. "Uh, what were you and the ghoul saying about radio stations?"

"Huh? Oh, you mean why was Gob banging on that radio? Well, out there in the Wastes, there are two stations that broadcast. There's the Enclave station. I don't know who they are, but I think it might just be some Pre-War broadcast on a loop or something. And there's Galaxy News Radio. It's run by a guy named Three Dog somewhere down in D.C. But the signal went down a while ago."

"What does Galaxy News Radio broadcast?" Amanda queried.

"You serious? Oh... you musta come from that vault. Right. It's the only free radio station left in the Wasteland. The guy who runs it, Three Dog, he's like the only person who seems to give a shit. He keeps talking about fighting the Good Fight, or something. Better than the crap on the other station."

"Huh. And what's the story with the ghoul my brother is talking to?" she asked, casting a nervous glance over in the bartender's direction.

"Who, Gob? Well, if you can get past how he looks, he's a sweetheart. Colin's awfully hard on him, though."

"Where did he come from?"

"He don't talk about it much, but apparently, there's a whole city of ghouls somewhere down in D.C. He's mentioned his mother a couple of times, but other than that, he won't really say. He's been here for... hm... I guess about fifteen years now. Ever since Moriarty bought him off those slavers."

A whole city of ghouls? That was one place Amanda was going to have to avoid if her brother and her ever went into the D.C. ruins.

"Why is Moriarty so hard on him?"

"Well, the miserable bastard is hard on all of us. But Gob gets it the worst. I guess just because he's different, you know?"

"Do you ever... you know... work with him?"

"With Gob?! Hah, well he's sweet... and I know that he'd like to, it's just... well... I don't want to sound shallow or anything. I mean, I'm a whore, my standards aren't exactly high. But there are places even I won't go. Johnnies that are squishier than me are one of 'em."

Hmmm... Nova said that, sure, but... Amanda caught the glance Megaton's local prostitute cast in the bartender's direction. It only lasted a split second, but... Amanda could tell. There was longing in that glance, and maybe even a hint of restrained passion. It almost made her inner matchmaker want to come out, like how she got Freddie Gomez and Amata together, but… Yeah, no way was she messing with this one. He was a ghoul, for Christ's sake. Amanda couldn't imagine anyone ever falling for a ghoul of all things, especially herself...

"Um... I'm looking for my dad. He wears a Pip-Boy like my brother and I do. Maybe you've seen him, Nova?"

"Yeah, I remember that man. I saw him talking to Moriarty. It's hard to forget handsome men like that."

Amanda inwardly jumped for joy. "Really? Great! Do you know where he went, Nova?"

"Yeah, I'll help ya. Then Moriarty kicks my sweet ass out the door. Sorry kid, if you want to know more, Moriarty is the only one who's going to help you. Talk to Gob. He hates Moriarty more than I do. Maybe he'll tell you something, but I doubt it."

A shudder ran up and down Amanda's spine. Ugh... No way was she talking to a ghoul. Besides, it looked like Oliver had the bartender covered. Soon, a man with wild lightly-colored hair and a beard emerged from the back, her brother walking up to him. Amanda, however, was drawn to a man in a white pinstripe business suit, matching hat, and tortoiseshell glasses trying to wave her over from a secluded corner of the bar.

"Colin Moriarty, at your service! Welcome to Moriarty's! My saloon, my home, my slice of heaven in this backwoods little burg. If you've got the caps, I've got your pleasure. Please, sit down, make yourself comfortable. Your troubles are a thing of the past."

Oliver stood before the taller man, glancing into the Irishman's eyes lazily and with his hands in his pockets. "Looking for my father. Wears a Pip-Boy like me. Seen him?"

"My God... it's you! The little baby boy, all grown up! Persistent little bastard, ain't ya? Then and now, it would seem. It's been a long time, kid. Oh, your daddy passed through here all right. Here and gone. Got what he came for and then left. I'm assuming you'll do the same, correct?"

Oliver quirked an eyebrow at the saloon owner. "My father and I were born in Vault 101..."

"Is _that _what your father told you?" Moriarty sputtered between laughs. "That you were born in that hole? That _he_ was born there, as well? Oh, the lies we tell to those we love. Your father brought you and your sister to the vault right after you were born. To keep you safe, you see. I remember it well; you stayed in my saloon, after all. That's right. Your father, his Brotherhood of Steel friend, his cyberdog that wouldn't shut up, your ankle biter of a sister who I see has blossomed into quite the grade-A poon, and you, the sucklin' babe with nary a tit to suckle. Sorry about your mom. Truly. But life goes on. Daddy lied. Life's full of little disappointments. And now... you're all grown up, and wonderin' where he's gone to..."

Oliver frowned. "My father told me we were born in Vault 101..."

"Ahhhh, I see. You know, I heard about the brainwashin' that goes on down there. From some other fella, escaped, oh... five years back. All hail the overseer! We're born in the vault, we die in the vault, and all that other assorted lunacy. Kid, you've got better programming than our own Deputy Weld. You'd best wise up quick. Wouldn't want anyone... takin' advantage of ya, hm?"

Oliver's left hand tightened into a fist, but he relaxed it. "Look... Just want to find my father... Know where he is?"

"You seem like a nice kid, so I'm going to be straight with ya. Your dad was here, and now he's not, and yes, I know where he went. But what you're askin' me for is information, and information is a commodity. Let's say... a hundred caps, and daddy's location is yours. Very reasonable."

Hmmm... He spent a lot of what he had on new outfits for Amanda and Clover, then the rest paying for Clovedr's meal. He only had about fifty odd caps on him. He didn't know Amanda made quite a lot from fixing the town's pipes yet...

"Don't have a hundred caps..." Oliver stated calmly.

"All right, kid. Let me help you out. You know, for old time's sake. If you don't have the caps to pay for the information, then maybe you could do a little favor for me."

"Want me to do your dirty work." Oliver stated. It wasn't a question.

"Who said anything about dirty work? You need some caps, and I'm givin' you a way to get 'em. It's just business. This junkie bitch named Silver borrowed quite a few caps from me. Claimed she could start funnelin' Jet and Pyscho to me for a good price. Problem is she scrammed with the loot and set herself up in Springvale so she can inject herself into a stupor. Get the caps she owes me and they're yours. Yours to pay me with, anyway. Heh heh heh heh heh heh!"

Oliver grimaced. "I'll be back..."

"A little bit of caps for so much information. Think about it." Moriarty called after him.

"My, my. Just when I had all but given up hope. My dear girl... I am very happy to make your acquaintance. I... am Mister Burke. And you, well, you... are not a resident of this putrescent cesspool. That makes you a rather valuable individual."

Something about this guy gave Amanda the creeps... But she sat down in the chair next to him anyway, putting on her best poker face. "Mister Burke, is it? Please, continue. I find myself... enthralled."

"Finally, someone with a modicum of civility and common sense. I represent certain... interests. And those interests view this town, this 'Megaton,' as a blight on a burgeoning urban landscape. You have no connections here, no interest in this cesspool's affairs, or fate. You could assist us in erasing this little _accident_ off the map."

Amanda quirked an eyebrow. "Wait... You're going to destroy the town?"

"No, no. I'm merely a recruiter. _You_ get to have the real fun. The undetonated atomic bomb for which this town is named is still very much alive. All it needs is a little... motivation. I have in my possession a fusion pulse charge. Once rigged to the bomb, it will be detonated, by you, at a secure location. Easy money, my friend."

Amanda brought her index finger to her chin in thought. "Interesting... Sheriff Simms wants me to disarm the bomb."

"Simms is an idiot. He prides himself on his position as mayor and _sheriff_ of this scrapyard."

Amanda should just play along for now, she figured... "All right. Say I decide to help you, Mister Burke. What's in it for me?"

"You mean, besides doing the world a favor by removing this pestilent scab of a town? Why, you'd be rewarded most handsomely! My employer is a very generous man. If it's bottle caps and luxury you're seeking, you shall have it."

"All right, Mister Burke. I'll do it. Megaton will burn."

"Excellent! I had a feeling about you." Mister Burke reached into his pocket and placed some sort of small contraption in Amanda's hands. "Here's the fusion pulse charge. It needs to be installed inside the bomb. When it's done, meet me at Tenpenny Tower. It's southwest of here, well out of harm's way. You can't miss it. Questions?"

"We're talking a lot of innocent lives here, Burke. Can I warn them?"

"Absolutely not! The place, the people, they're one and the same! Sacrifices for a nobler future. I assure you, they are worth ten times as much in death, as they are in life."

"Errr... I'll be on my way, then."

"Don't let me keep you."

Just as Amanda got up from her chair and placed the fusion pulse charge safely between her breasts, she noticed Oliver storm out of the saloon and outside. Well, maybe 'stormed' was the wrong word... But his steps definitely carried more weight in them. That could only mean it happened... Moriarty had told her little brother the truth about his childhood.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Amanda was hot on Oliver's tail. She found him leaning over the railing just outside, gazing out over Megaton.

"I..." Amanda began.

"Is it true, Amanda? Was I not born in the vault?" Oliver asked, his voice sullen and his gaze distant.

"It's true. Neither of us were."

"Oh."

Amanda quirked an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Yes. Oh."

"What do you mean, oh? You're... not mad?"

Oliver continued to gaze out at the Megaton cityscape, not looking at his older sister. "No. Should I be?"

"Well, yeah... I figured you would be. I mean, dad and I lied to you your whole life."

"Nothing is as black and white as that, Amanda."

"But... We kept it from you for so long..."

"How could you have told me? What would I have done had I known?"

"But... the vault was home, wasn't it?"

"No..."

Oliver stood up from the railing, turning to look at his sister, a small smile on his face.

"Home is where you make it. Home is where your heart is. Home isn't where you were born or where you grew up. Home is wherever you and everyone you love are in the present moment."

Amanda felt a tear come to her eye. Oliver reached up and gently plucked her glasses from her face, breathing on them and cleaning them with the sleeve of his jumpsuit before tenderly placing them back on the bridge of her nose. She blushed at the gesture, feeling more like the little sister right now...

"I'm sorry, it's just... I had a feeling you would find out some day, but I... I never imagined it would be me trying to convince you to be mad at me, instead of me trying to convince you not to be mad at me..."

Oliver smiled his small smile. "You were prepared for a windfall... But not that it hasn't come and won't, you're lost as to what to do, huh? Well, don't worry about it. We're here now. That's all that matters."

Amanda chuckled a little, adjusting her glasses higher up on her nose. "Thanks. C'mon. Let's go."

"Yeah. Need to pay a woman named Silver in Springvale a visit."

Amanda quirked an eyebrow at that.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

After explaining the situation to Amanda, Oliver asked Malcolm if he knew where a woman named Silver in Springvale was. To their surprise, he did indeed, and he'd even show them, but this would be the last time he helped them out. Clover, of course, tagged along. Now dressed in a clean pink Pre-War spring dress and a bit more plumper after her large meal, she seemed in much better spirits, though her sawed-off shotgun and Chinese officer's saber at her hips could use some maintenance. Amanda just couldn't figure out why Clover was still following them around when she'd made it clear to the girl that Oliver had bought her her freedom.

Malcolm led them to a small ranch that was mostly intact, knocking on the door. The sound of numerous locks being undone was heard from the other side, only for the door to open a mere crack before a chain stopped it, a woman with platinum blonde hair and dressed in a hoodie staring out at them.

"Who the hell are you? Where'd you come from? Did Moriarty send you?"

"Yes, and he says you owe him some caps." Amanda explained.

"That bastard! He's a... He's a liar! He just wants me dead! Those caps are all mine! I earned them!"

Clover tightened her grip on her saber at the sight of the woman's aggression, but a hand on her shoulder from Oliver settled her down.

"Calm down. Tell us your side of the story." the boy offered calmly.

"Look, I used to work for that slob. Doing... you know... favors for guys. Well, I got sick and tired of it. I told Moriarty I'm takin' my share of the caps and leaving. I even slept with the pig to seal the deal. Next morning he tells me I couldn't leave. So I bolted. I took my money and ran. Now he's branded me a thief and a junkie and sent his cronies to find me. I guess I need a new hiding place."

Oliver's face remained blank, but slowly, he nodded. "Keep your caps. We'll tell Moriarty you're gone."

Malcolm and Clover's eyes widened. Amanda smiled. Silver's jaw dropped.

"You'd do that for me? I can't believe it... You hardly even know me."

"No, I don't. But I know Moriarty enough to know how he treats people who work for him."

"Well... Thanks, kid. You watch yourself out there." Silver smiled, shutting the door gently.

Malcolm turned to Oliver. "Kid... You really need to quit doin' that shit. You just passed up an opportunity for easy caps for nothing."

Oliver shook his head, his gleaming white locks flipping from the motion. "Not for nothing. Never for nothing."

Amanda gazed down at the ground in thought. To be honest... Amanda would've just told Silver she'd only tell Moriarty she was gone if she gave her all the caps she took. But she could tell... That kind of even trade didn't even cross Oliver's mind. She clutched her palm to her chest, realizing that... she had to tell Oliver about the man in the saloon.

Reaching into the neckline of her tank top, Amanda removed the fusion pulse charge, holding it out for Oliver to see. The young man quirked an eyebrow at it.

"I have some explaining to do, little brother..."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They found Lucas Simms patrolling around Megaton. He watched the siblings run up to him with curiosity.

"Hey there. Something wrong?"

Once Amanda caught her breath, she explained. "I met a man named Burke. He said he'd pay me to rig the bomb to explode!"

"He said what?! Oh, I never did like the look of him..."

"He gave me this fusion pulse charge to rig to the bomb. Here, take it." Amanda explained, holding the small device out for the sheriff.

"Jesus! Gimme that thing!" Simms grabbed it, throwing it on the ground and stomping it to bits. He pulled the Chinese assault rifle off his back, his eyes determined. "Let's go find this Burke character. You're about to get an education in Wasteland justice."

"He's at Moriarty's Saloon, sheriff!" Amanda called after him as he ran off, the group of four in hot pursuit.

They followed Simms up the ramps of the town and stormed into Moriarty's Saloon, ignoring the tavern owner's cries of anger, cornering Burke in the chair he sat on in the side room.

"You there! Burke! Explain your business in Megaton!" Simms demanded of the man.

"I'm sorry? Sheriff, what are you hollering about?" Burke responded, feigning innocence.

"You know damn well what I'm talking about! The bomb! You're trying to blow it up! Have ya lost ya goddamn mind?!"

"Sheriff, I'm afraid there's been a... heh heh... misunderstanding. Someone's surely been spreading rumors. I'll be sure to address the situation... personally."

Lucas Simms wasn't backing town, almost aiming the barrel of his rifle right in Burke's face. "I'm placing you under arrest, Burke. At least until I figure out what the hell is going on around here."

"And _I'm_ afraid I won't be able to oblige your request, _sheriff_. I have pressing matters to attend to. Now... step aside."

"This isn't open to discussion! You're coming with me."

"Why do you knuckle draggers always insist on doing things the hard way? Very well, sheriff. Lead the way."

Simms turned around, Burke getting up from his chair. But as he did so, his hand reached for the silenced 10mm pistol at his hip, which he drew and pointed at the back of the sheriff's head.

Amanda's eyes widened. It was happening so fast! The girl dove to jump in-between the two men, but the sound of a gunshot rang through the saloon.

Except... it wasn't Simms, nor Amanda who was shot...

The silenced pistol fell to the floor, a cry of pain coming from Burke as he clutched his bleeding hand, which had several bits of buckshot imbedded in it.

Amanda looked to see Clover standing there, her sawed-off shotgun pointed at the man and the barrels still smoking.

"Threat neutralized. Target: Safe. Neutralization level: Disarmed." she said under her breath, barely above a whisper.

Simms had whirled around, smiling at what he saw.

"Well, I guess I'm getting soft in my old age. First thing's first. We'll take Burke to Doc Church to have him patched u-"

Simms was shoved aside as Burke ran off, storming out of the saloon and clutching his mangled hand.

Amanda looked to Clover, who had put her shotgun away and was gazing down at the ground shyly once more. "Um... I'm sorry..."

"Sorry for what? You did good, Clover." Oliver soothed, rubbing the top of the girl's head.

"Yep. I'd say I owe you my life, girl."

A sheepish smile came across Clover's face. She likely wasn't used to being thanked for things...

First Malcolm, now Clover... Amanda wasn't sure what it was, but something about Oliver tended to bring out the best in everyone... His selfless acts of kindness and compassion inspired those around him to do the same. Maybe... it was about time she started acting in turn.

Amanda turned and silently walked out of the saloon, a smile on her face.

"Where are you going, girl?" Simms called after her.

Oliver bent down and picked up Burke's discarded silenced pistol. It looked heavily customized, even engraved in ornate etchings. "Think I know where she's heading..." Oliver mused aloud.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

People stopped to watch Amanda walking by as she headed down the ramps and into the center of town. Maybe it was the determined look on her face, or maybe the smile that went along with it. But as she stepped into the irradiated puddle surrounding the bomb and opened a hatch on it, she had drawn a small crowd. Confessor Cromwell paused in his sermon nearby to watch what the girl was up to.

"What are you doing His vessel, child?" he asked.

"Something that should have been done a long time ago." Amanda answered.

"Stop her! Stop her, I proclaim!" the Confessor cried, pointing at the girl.

Nearly everyone in town had come to watch around the puddle and from the railings around town upon hearing the Confessor's cries. Oliver, Clover, Malcolm, and Simms had caught up by now, joining the still-growing crowd.

"Don't try to stop me." Amanda explained, not turning away from her work as sweat began to form on her brow. "One wrong move and I'll blow us all up, and I don't want that any more than you do."

"Sheriff! Stop her!" the Confessor cried. Lucas Simms only watched from the sidelines, crossing his arms under his chest.

"I invoked the wrath of Atom upon you! May your bones melt, your skin burn, and your ashes be scattered and forgotten! You are desecrating a holy relic! You are-"

"Done." Amanda closed the panel and stepped back, the crowd growing deafeningly silent.

"What... have you done..." the Confessor asked after a moment, his voice quivering.

"I disarmed the bomb." She stated proudly.

Cromwell grasped at the sides of his head, his eyes widening. "What? But, I, you, with... Atom! But... And..." he stammered, stumbling away from his podium.

Oliver walked up to stand next to Amanda, though Clover and Malcolm hung back with Simms.

"That's not all she did!" a voice from high up called. Everyone looked to see Walter up on the balcony of the water processing plant. "She fixed the leaking pipes around town! The water is cleaner and clearer than ever!"

"Her brother, too." A male voice called. Andy Stahl walked out of the crowd, surprising the nearby watching Jenny. "My brother Leo just came clean to me earlier about his drug habit. Said that boy there helped him see the light. I know I can be a bit of a jerk, but my brother means the world to me. So... thank you."

The crowd gasped. Everyone knew how surly and rude Andy Stahl could be. To see him humbled like this... it was unimaginable!"

"That's not all they did!" It was the sheriff's turn to chime in. "You all know that Burke character that's been hangin' around town the past week or so? He was fixin' to blow up the whole town!" More gasps from the crowd. "Burke offered these kids, who just arrived out of the vault today, the chance to live a life of luxury by murdering all of us! Instead they came to me, then when I went to confront Burke, saved my sorry hide from that treacherous snake!" The crowd set to chittering amongst themselves, but Simms continued. "And not only that... When I offered them caps to disarm the bomb... they refused, said they'd do it for free."

Up on one of the railings, a woman with bright red hair tied in a bun and dressed in a blue RobCo jumpsuit watched curiously, but kept silent, a smile on her face.

A man in rags with a sunburned face stumbled out of the crowd, falling at Amanda and Oliver's feet. "They gave me water! Precious, priceless water, without asking anything in return! Bless you, young lad! You saved my life!" he exclaimed. This set the crowd talking amongst themselves.

Billy Creel stepped forward from the crowd next, his hands on the shoulder of a nine-year-old Asian girl holding a baseball and a mitt.

"He even gave my girl Maggie these toys for nothing." The man pointed out.

"Not for nothing, Billy..." Oliver repeated. "Told you that before."

Silence fell on the crowd... Then a single, repeating clap could be heard. Amanda looked up and saw it was from a woman high up in a blue jumpsuit. Then someone else joined in clapping, then another, and another. Soon the whole town was cheering.

Amanda rubbed her arm, not liking all this attention, but a hand on her shoulder from Oliver made her look, calmed by the small smile on his serene face.

"Who the fuck do you think you are?!"

The crowd fell silent. Everyone turned to see Jericho shove his way through the crowd, smelling of whiskey and throwing a spent cigarette butt at the siblings' feet.

"These two are a couple of vault assholes!" Jericho spat, turning to face the crowd. "They ain't doin' this outta the kindess a' their hearts! It's outta pity, like they think we can't take care of ourselves! They had everythin' provided for 'em in that damn prissy little vault, so they feel some kinda obligation to shepherd us around like little sheep! Do I look like a kid to you, you piece of shit?"

He said the last part to Oliver, his finger right in the boy's face. Oliver, however, stood his ground, just staring at the ex-Raider calmly.

"Don't get used to havin' these vault assholes around! They don't know nothin' about the wasteland. They're gonna get fuckin' fucked out there once they leave these walls! I'm the best shot in town with a rifle, and you call come cryin' to me when Raiders attack, but as soon as things are safe, you're content to take my money and drag me home when I've had too much! But these vault assholes show up outta nowhere and now you're worshippin' 'em? Don't fuck with me!"

The crowd began to disperse, and Jericho soon was gone as well. Simms walked up to the siblings, a smile on his face.

"Don't let Jericho get to you. He's an ex-raider. Doesn't really see goodness in things anymore after what he's seen. Now, I know you said you wouldn't accept caps, but I feel you deserve something as thanks."

"Amanda did all the work, sheriff." Oliver pointed out. Amanda blushed at that.

"Now, don't go giving all the credit to her. You're a team. And so, I'd like to give you this." He reached into his pocket and handed Oliver a piece of paper and a key."

Oliver gave it a quick skim. "A deed... and a key?"

"To your new home." Simms explained, smiling.

Amanda's eyes widened. "Our new what?"

"Been tryin' to find a good owner for that house for a while now. Has all the basics, though you can always scrounge furniture from nearby ruins. We'd be honored to have you live with us. It's way better than the common house, for sure. Ha ha ha!"

Amanda was about to refuse, but Oliver nodded, slipping the key into his pocket and scanning the deed into his Pip-Boy.

"Thank you, sheriff..." The boy said.

Clover and Malcolm both watched from the sides. Though they had radically different pasts and personalities, they were both thinking the same thought:

Neither of them had ever met people like Oliver and Amanda Carpenter... Though Malcolm had said he'd only escort them to Megaton, and Clover now knew she truly had her freedom, both felt... These people might need them. And at the same time... they wanted to stick with them. Malcolm because he may have just found the last, best hope for humanity, and Clover because... Her life was hers to live now, to make her own decisions. And her decision... was to follow these two to the gates of hell and back.

As Simms showed the siblings to their new home with Clover and Malcolm in tow, a mysterious figure observed them from a distance. A stranger to all in town and dressed in a trench coat with a golden .44 magnum revolver at his hip, he flicked the butt of a cigar onto the ground and stomped it out, pausing to straighten the fedora atop his head and smiling to himself. Maybe, just maybe... These people would need his help. He might have just found his new charges...

The man stepped into a nearby shadow and vanished with a flicker of light, leaving no evidence of having ever been there, save for the burnt-out cigar butt on the ground.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Notes

**1:** Rum and Nuka is a consumable alcoholic drink in Fallout: New Vegas. It's essentially rum and Coke.

**2:** Roentgen Rum is a consumable alcoholic drink in Fallout 2 and Fallout Tactics.


	3. Chapter 2: Super Duper Sale

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fallout. Fallout belongs to Bethesda, who purchased the rights from Black Isle. Any plot ideas used from "The Legend of the Wandering Pair from Vault 101" belong to Nave Ninja.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Fallout 3

Ties That Bind

By _Cyberweasel89_

**Chapter 2:** Super Duper Sale

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"There ya are. Package arrived for ya."

Oliver quirked an eyebrow. Amanda was similarly confused. Colin Moriarty reached under the bar counter and tossed Oliver something that was long and wrapped in brown paper, tied with string. He also tossed Amanada a smaller, rounder package similarly wrapped and tied.

Amanda opened hers first, finding it was a roll of boxing tap and a copy of Pugilism Illustrated that included a diagram of how to apply the boxing tape.

Oliver opened his to find it was... a... a sword? Yes, it was clearly a Japanese katana, with a red hilt and a brown wooden scabbard. Oliver pulled it out of the sheath for a second, confirming it was, indeed, a real blade. It also included an instructional book on kata and sword stances.

"Who sent them?" Amanda asked, gazing in awe at the sword.

"No clue. Found 'em just inside the saloon's back door with notes sayin' to give 'em to you. Though now that I see what that one is, I shoulda just kept them myself and sold it."

This was... highly confusing. They could've been gifts for helping out around town, but who in Megaton would have access to a mint condition samurai sword complete with a traditional wooden saya? Oliver affixed the blade to his hip, while Amanda followed the instructions in the book and wrapped her hands in boxing tape. Who could this stranger be who would give them such gifts so mysteriously?

"Anyway, what's it to be? A few caps to find out where your father went, or are you going to have a go of it on your own? Ah, the Wasteland can be such an unforgiving place."

"Took care of Silver for you..." Oliver stated.

"Good. I hope she got what she deserved."

"Tell us where our father is now?" Oliver continued.

"Well, you took care of our little lost lamb. I knew I could count on you. How about you just hand over a hundred caps and we'll call it even?"

Amanda jumped in. "What?! We handled Silver for you, and you still want us to pay?"

"It's called economics, kid. You got somethin' I want and I got somethin' you want. Nothin's free. I told you the favor would earn ya some caps if ya really took care of it. Now fork 'em over!"

Amanda felt her rage building. She reached for the 10mm pistol at her hip, but a vicegrip attached to her wrist. It wasn't rough, more... calming. She looked to see Oliver was giving her a stern stare.

"We'll be back." he stated calmly.

"I'll be here."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They met up with Malcolm and Clover outside.

"How'd it go?" the man asked.

"We need to make some money, fast." Amanda sighed.

"Well, let's see..." Malcolm brought his hand to his chin in thought. "The girl who runs Craterside Supply always has somethin' she wants done. You might wanna check with her. That shop's only open during daylight hours, though."

"To Craterside Supply we go, then." Amanda cheered.

They made their way across the walkways of Megaton to Craterside Supply, walking in to find a redheaded woman in a blue RobCo jumpsuit sweeping the floor, while a man in leather armor leaned against a wall. There was also a robobrain in the corner, which looked to be in the middle of being serviced since its case was wide open.

"Hey, I hear you're those strays from the vault! I haven't seen one of you for years!" the woman greeted the two. "Good to meet you! I'm Moira Brown. I run Craterside Supply, but what I really do is mostly tinkering and research."

"Hello, Moira. I'm Amanda Carpenter, and this is my brother Oliver. That girl there is Clover, and you probably know Malcolm." Amanda introduced them.

"You bet I do! I know Malcolm pretty gosh darn well, actually. Say, I'm working on a book about the Wasteland. It'd be great to have the foreword by a Vault Dweller! Help me out, would you?"

Oliver nodded. "Sure."

"Great! Just tell me what it's like to live underground all your life, or, or to come outside for the first time, or whatever strikes your fancy!"

"Well, life in the vault wasn't perfect, but it was pretty safe and secure. Nice place to grow up. Only reason we left was because our father did." Oliver explained.

"A runaway dad, huh? I've seen plenty of them before, but none with a big 'one-oh-one' on their back! Good luck finding him! How about I armor your vaultsuit for you as thanks for the foreward?"

That got Oliver's attention, Amanda noted. "Pardon?"

"If you have a spare Vaultsuit on you, just give it to me, and I'll armor it for you! Free, as thanks for the help with the book's foreword. Interested?"

Oliver didn't answer. Instead he dropped his backpack ad removed a vault 101 jumpsuit, handing it to Moira.

"Great! I should have it ready by tomorrow, possibly the next day. What you gave will be really good for the book. In fact, wanna help me with the research? I can pay you, and it'll be fun!"

"What sort of pay? What sort of work?" Oliver queried.

"Let's see... dealing with radiation, texting an experimental device, and I won't lie, it may include some reading. That sort of stuff, you know? But for all that, I can pay you with caps, meds, chems, and maybe even a few of those unique inventions, if you do a good job. Interested?"

"Sounds good. Tell me more."

"Well, it's a dangerous place out there in the Wastes, right? People could really use a compilation of good advice. Like... a Wasteland Survival Guide! For that, I need an assistant to test my theories. I wouldn't want anyone to get hurt because of a mistake. Nobody's ever happy when that happens. No... Then they just yell a lot. At me. With mean, mean words."

"Tell me more about the pay." Amanda jumped in, eager for caps to find out where their dad went.

"Oh, uh, caps, chems, meds, and maybe even a few unique inventions, if you do a good job. I'm sure I've got something that'll catch your eye. With a little ingenuity, you can turn a pile of junk into a mountain of caps! And there's no shortage of junk! So, will you help out?"

"Sure. Sounds like a good idea! Can't wait to help!" Amanda answered for her brother.

"Good enthusiasm! Now, I think the first chapter will have to be about surviving day-to-day dangers. Things like where it is and isn't safe to find food, the dangers of radiation, and how to avoid and even profit from dangerous landmines. Oooo, sounds like fun, doesn't it? Which do you want to do first?"

"What was that about radiation?" Oliver continued for his sister.

"Well, that's what I need your help for, isn't it? I know lots about it from books, but I never seem to get a live example. Not for long, anyway. So I need you to get a bit of radiation poisoning, so I can study it's effects. Oh, not a deadly dose, of course. I can fix you up before that."

"Want me to get irradiated? How could that possibly be worth it for me?"

"Oh, don't worry so much about it! I'll be here waiting with a nice, tall glass of rad-cleansing Brahmin milk for you when you get back. But I can pay you mostly with a whole lot of Rad-X and RadAway. And maybe even a more reliable way to get rid of radiation... Assuming it works, of course...

Oliver sighed. "Fine. I'll get irradiated. Just be ready to fix me up when I get back."

"Oh, you're a peach! Or at least, some sort of hardy fruit that grows in this savagely irradiated mockery of agriculture we have nowadays. Now, two hundred rads should be enough for basic sickness, but if you can get six hundred or more rads, my test will be even more accurate! Just make sure you can get back here, and I'll see to it that you're well taken care of!"

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"She's a bit off, that one."

Oliver turned to his sister as the group left Craterside Supply, quirking his eyebrow at her like he usually did when he was requesting elaboration.

"You know, we could just _tell_ her we looked into it. How is _she_ gonna to know one way or the other?" Amanda asked, one hand on her hip as she gestured back to the store with the other.

Malcolm chuckled to himself, but a sudden wave of the hand from Oliver silenced him. Wow. Who knew the kid had such presence?

"Said we'd do it. We're doing it." Oliver stated firmly.

"Alright, don't get your panties in a knot. It was just a suggestion." Amanda replied playfully.

They made their way to the puddle of water around the bomb at the center of town, which was curiously absent of Confessor Cromwell giving his sermons. Oliver walked into the middle of the puddle, immediatley hearing his Pip-Boy begin ticking he began to get irradiated. To speed it up, he drank as much of the irradiated water as he could, and soon began feeling incredibly weak as his Pip-Boy's geiger counter climbed to six hundred. He managed to walk slowly out of the water, with Amanda and Clover rushing to support him as they made their way back to Craterside Supply.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"Oh, feeling a bit under the weather? Or a bit over the geiger counter?" Moira joked upon seeing Clover and Amanda dragging Oliver in.

"About as irradiated as I can get without burning a hole in the floor..." Oliver groaned.

"I can tell. You're positively... glowing! Now just hold on, and try not to move. Tell me how it feels, and I'll get you fixed right up."

"Just do your examination and fix me up, please..." Oliver deadpanned.

Moira gently took Oliver from the two girls, shouldering him into the back and placing him on her workbench, of all things.

"You're a mighty lucky one, you know that? At this state, most people'd have trouble standing up, much less walking over here. Then again, you _did_ have help from your two gal pals!" Oliver just cringed. "Now, let me take a few notes, then I'll handle that nasty radiation with a bit of my own home-made rad-cure concoction. I've never had a chance to test it out on someone so heavily dosed, but I'm sure it'll work out fine. Exciting, isn't it?"

She promptly unzipped his jumpsuit and began to poke and prod at his chest with various doctor tools, including a stethoscope and geiger counter.

"Can I ask you about your work and how my research fits into it?" Oliver asked as Moira examined him and took notes on a clipboard with a pencil.

"Sure thing, I'm an open book! What'd you want to know?" she chirped.

"Why can't you do this research yourself?"

"Oh, I haven't got nearly the experience in the wastes that most people do! If I tried half of these things, heh, I'd get my head blown off, heh! At least you look like you can really handle yourself out there. All I'm good at is coming up with the ideas and fiddling with junk for caravans."

"Heh. It's really good of you to try to help people like this."

"I know, right? I figured, instead of just helping out the caravans with odd junk, why not put my brilliant mind to work for everyone? And between my book smarts and your street smarts, this guide'll save a dozen times more lives than those greedy merchants will."

"Well, proud to be a part of it. Can count on me."

"That's the spirit, trusty research assistant!"

"How's the book coming, by the way?"

"I'm still working out the kinks in the first chapter. I'm calling it... 'Survive.' It's about dealing with the day-to-day needs out there. Finding food and water, avoiding hazards like radiation and traps. That sort of stuff."

"Sounds good. Um... Almost done?"

"Yep, I think I have all the notes I need! Time to get you fixed up! Okay, a little brahmin milk... a couple magnets... and maybe a few happy thoughts."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Moira walked out from the back with Oliver on her shoulder, setting him down in a chair behind the counter."

"Is my brother okay?" Amanda asked, gazing nervously over at the sick-looking boy.

"Well, he's alive. Oh, that's the good news. But there was a little side effect. A teeny, tiny, um... mutation. Uh, but it seems to be benign, at least!"

"What? Mutation? You mutated my brother?!" Amanda yelled angrily, causing Clover and even Malcolm to both take a step back.

"Oh, don't worry! All he did was grow a sixth toe! But I amputated it nice and clean."

Amanda held up what seemed to be a plastic baggie, with a small amputated toe residing in it.

Amanda was about to go off on a tangent, but she was stopped by a hand on her shoulder from Oliver, who seemed to have gotten up from his chair and walked over to her when no one was looking. He always could move silently. His touch immediately calmed Amanda, but she couldn't help but notice him glance at the bagged toe on the counter. Was he... Was he feeling a terrible sense of loss looking at his tiny mutated toe?

"Here, take a few radiation chems. As my little way of saying 'I'm sorry I twisted your brother's DNA like a kitten with a ball of yarn.'"

She handed Amanda four bottles of Rad-X and two pouches of RadAway. What? Radiation chems? They needed money! Amanda was about to rant and rave at the woman, but another stern look and hand on the shoulder from Oliver silenced her. She did, however, notice him pocket his own mutated toe in his vaultsuit. Ew.

"Ready to continue research on the first chapter." Oliver calmly stated to Moira.

"I've got to see how safe it is to scavenge food from one of those huge stores out there, and I need to research how to travel through a minefield, and that'll cover the first section of the book! Which strikes your fancy?"

"Getting food doesn't sound so bad. What are you looking for?" Oliver asked, his tone it's usual low, mellow, and even tone, despite what he just went through.

"Well, food and medicine. Everyone needs them once in a while, right? So they need a good place to find them. There's an old Super-Duper Mart not far from here. I need to know if a place like that still has any food or medicine left in it."

"What's the pay?" Amanda asked, somewhat harshly.

"Hopefully, you'd be finding food and medicine, but I could sweeten the deal by paying more food when you get back, regardless of the results. While you're away, I can at least search through my junk and see if there's anything that'll go... with old food to make it more... appetizing."

"Okay. We'll check the Super-Duper Mart." Oliver confirmed.

"Oh, great! Food is most important, but see if you can get medicine, too! And if there's nothing to find, then just come back in one piece, okay?"

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The four left Carterside Supply and went to their house to get ready for the trip. The house was small and ramshackle, with a small kitchenette that consisted of a refrigerator, oven with a stovetop, and a sink, along with a bathroom with a sink, toilet, and bathtub with a showerhead, and a seperate room with a bed with nothing but a mattress on it, but that was about it. They might need to get more furniture form nearby ruins, but at least they could store some of their excess belongings on the floors against the walls until they could scavenge some storage containers. They made their way to the Brass Lantern for lunch afterwards.

"Know anything about the Super-Duper Mart? It safe?" Oliver asked Malcolm over his skewer of iguana.

"Safe? No. Buildings like that nearly always have, uhh, 'inhabitants,' shall we call them." he explained between bites of his brahmin steak.

"Inhabitants? Like people squatting in them?" Oliver inquired.

"Errr... No, kid. It's usually either raiders or super mutants."

Oliver just quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Raiders. People who rape and pillage for a living. Super mutants are big yellow things that eat, kill, or capture people."

Amanda remembered the super mutants... they attacked Project Purity daily when she lived there with her parents before Oliver was born, though she had only been three years old at the time.

"Think Moira realizes it's not safe?" Oliver asked.

"Nah. She's an airhead. Really, I don't think she knows. Maybe she should get out more."

"Should we even do this, or will it just end badly?" Amanda interjected.

"I say we should give it a shot. Besides, ya have me and Clover on your side."

"Oh! Clover! You know, you don't have to follow us around anymore. Oliver freed you." Amanda pointed out to the girl, who had been pretty quiet for a long time.

Clover jumped at the sudden outburst from Amanda, gazing down at her lap and tapping her fingers together nervously.

"Um... I... Uh..."

"Clover. Don't have to decide what you want to do right now. Can follow us around a while longer until you make your decision. That what you want?" Oliver explained, placing a hand on the girl's wrist, making her jump a little at the contact.

"Um... Yes..."

"Okay. Happy to have you, Clover."

A small smile came to the ex-slave's lips.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The group of four started off east from Megaton, following the marking Moira had entered into Oliver and Amanda's Pip-Boys. They ran into a pack of four viscious, feral dogs along the way, so Malcolm showed them how to aim and shoot properly with the 10mm pistols they had from Vault 101. It turned out Amanda was a better shot than Oliver, who was a bit clunky with his gun despite all his target practice with his BB gun back in the vault. Malcolm also showed them how to harvest the best cuts of meat from each dog. It was as they were nearing a water tower with the Super-Duper Mart in sight that they saw a man with a large backpack on his back walking by with a huge bear that seemed stricken with mange.

"Watch out, little brother! Yao guai!" Amanda cried out, drawing her gun and firing at the beast.

Luckily, she missed, with Malcolm having shoved her arm away from the bear, though the man the bear was following seemed alarmed.

"Sorry about that, partner. The girl and the boy are fresh out of a vault. They've never seen a tame yao guai before." the man explained.

"Don't worry. No harm done. I know it's rare to see a fast, powerful beast like this on our side."

"Yao guai?" Oliver quirked an eyebrow.

"Well, what with two hundred years of radiation, the original black bears of the D.C. area mutated with a kind of ghoulification. Now they have rotting skin, extremely long life spans, and as you can tell from Brumas over here, underdeveloped windpipes." the man explained, patting the wheezing bear on the shoulder, which slumped onto the ground to rest.

"Oh, gee. I'm sorry about that. If I knew your yao guai was friendly, I wouldn't have shot." Amanda apologized.

"Like I said, don't worry about it. Yao guai don't go down from a measly 10mil anyway. Oh, but I know how you can make it up to me. Can I interest you in an extremely rare refreshment?"

Oliver stepped forward "That sounds pretty good in this heat. What is it?"

"It's called a Nuka-Cola Quantum. It's much better than your average Nuka-Cola... It even glows in the dark!"

This perked Oliver's attention, being the Nuka-Cola fan that he was. "How is it better than a regular Nuka-Cola?"

"For only one-hundred caps, you'll be the first to find out! I was on my way to Girdershade to sell it to the lady there, but you could save me the trip."

"How about fifty caps?" Oliver offerred, reaching into his pocket for the pouch they kept the group's caps in.

"Well, it _will_ save me the trip. Fine, you've got a deal! Enjoy!"

The man lowered his backpack to the ground, reaching in and removing a bottle of Nuka-Cola that seemed to have clearer glass, with a glowing blue liquid inside. Oliver was about to pop the cap, but Amanda stopped him.

"I'd save it for later, little brother. I don't want you on caffeine or sugar buzz while we're about to get into a fight."

Shrugging, Oliver instead put the bottle of Quantum in his own backpack, and the group continued on their way.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The group found two people milling about in front of the Super-Duper Mart, dressed in armor cobbled together from junk. One was armed with a 10mm submachine gun, the other with a sawed-off shotgun. They soon noticed the group of four and began firing. Oliver, figuring they were raiders, drew his 10mm pistol and fired, but missed each time, partly because he was aiming for non-lethal spots. He'd... never killed anyone before. Amanda, however, was a pretty decent shot, but it was actually Malcolm with his hunting rifle and Clover with her own sawed-off who ended up landing the most hits and dealing the killing blows.

Oliver gagged at the smell of rotting flesh. It seemed the raiders had decorated the outside of the Super-Duper Mart with corpses hanging from any overhead structure. These people had sick taste in decorating, he concluded.

"You ready to head inside? Probably crawlin' with raiders." Malcolm asked the group. The three only nodded. "Try to stick together. Use shelves and counters for cover. Watch me, I'm good at that. Try to split our targets so we keep them each occupied. Got it?" They nodded again.

Opening the double doors to the Super-Duper Mart, they found wrecked, rusted shopping carts lying everywhere. Malcolm ducked low and made his way further in, Oliver, Amanda, and Clover following suit. They stuck to a counter, and Oliver couldn't help but notice an intercom sitting atop it. As the others made their way further in, Oliver turned the knob on the intercom to maximum volume, then followed his three companions.

A raider was patrolling the top of the shelves, which were connected by planks of wood, while another was hanging around the registers. Malcolm shot down the one on the shelves with his hunting rifle, while Clover blasted the one near the registers with her sawed-off. By then the other raiders heard the gunshots. Two took cover behind a counter in the back of the store, firing with a combat shotgun and assault rifle, while another fired with a sawed-off shotgun from another counter. Oliver fired for the one with the sawed-off, but found he needed to get pretty close to nail a shot. He got lucky, though, and nailed a headshot, grimacing over the fact that he just killed a man. Amanda and Malcolm took care of the ones behind the first counter, while Clover blasted a raider that just exited the restrooms. A quick sweep of the store confirmed that was all of the raiders. Three of them had assault rifles, and Amanda was quick to grab the one in best condition and salvage parts from the others to give herself a powerful new semi-automatic firearm.

They found some chems in the bathrooms, which Oliver pocketed with the intent to use for medical reasons. They found a refrigerator in one of the empty food displays, and discovered quite a bit of Pre-War packaged food in them. That covered finding food in the Super-Duper Mart, but they needed medicine. There was a seperate room near the entrance, so they went to investigate it.

Inside was another refrigerator that they found yet more food in, though there was also a surprise: Two laster pistols. Oliver picked one up, feeling its weight and testing it in a firing grip. It felt... right... in his hand. More so than the 10mm.

"What's up, kid?" Malcolm asked as he saw Oliver grabbing the other laser pistol.

"Think energy weapons are my thing..." Oliver mused.

"That might explain your poor performance with conventional firearms, kid. But c'mon. We'll probably find medicine in the pharmacy. Let's go."

They went behind a door and down a hall, heading to the right to a behind-a-counter area where, inside a box, they happen to find a key labeled for the Super-Duper Pharmacy. Useful, though Oliver could've just hacked the computer connected to the door's lock, or Amanda could've just picked the lock. Inside was a Protectron pod, and Oliver quickly hacked the computer to activate the robot. The pod opened, the robot looking about and flexing its claws.

"Loading personality... RobCo R04 V9 'Office Helper...'" it began in its robotic voice, beginning to walk into the room.

"Running default office protocol... ERROR... Loading daily agenda... ERROR... Security breach detected. Please stand back." the robot stopped when it saw Oliver and his group.

"Greetings fellow office employee. Please present your valid ID."

Oliver noticed an ID badge sitting on top of the computer. As fast as he could, he grabbed it and held it up for the Protectron.

"Scanning for office ID... ID accepted. Have a nice day."

It passed them by, heading into the Super-Duper Mart. They proceeded to check the pharmacy, finding a lot of chems in a first aid kit on the wall, but then a voice came on over the intercom system.

"We're back. Somebody open up the... Wait a minute. Somethin' ain't right he-AHHHHH!"

Oliver figured it was more of the raiders of this group returning, only to get attacked by the Protectron, but Clover, who had been guarding the entrance to the pharmacy, rushed in.

"We've got problems!" she cried.

Oliver ran outside the pharmacy, drawing his laster pistol in time to see a huge, giant spider kill and tear apart a raider. Oliver fired his laser pistol, his shots hitting easily, but they didn't seem to do much damage. The spider tore through the store, knocking down shelves as Malcolm and Amanda both fired on it. With a swing of its front legs, it sent both of them flying into a shelf and wall, respectively. Oliver slowly moved backward, his laser pistol drawn and staring down the giant spider's many eyes. But... then he heard a growling sound, followed soon by a bark and a snarl. The spider fell to the ground as something seemed to be attack it from behind. It writched around, trying to get rid of whatever was attacking it, but then finally its body fell limp. Oliver looked up to see something standing triumphantly atop the now dead spider on four legs, the boy's mouth falling open.

"Sparky?"

"Hello, young master!" the cyberdog chirped, his tail wagging and tongue hanging out as he panted.

"Sparky... What are you doing out here?"

"I'm running around, killing things! What are _you_ doing out here?" Sparky innocently asked, hopping off the giant spider and trotting over to Oliver.

"Looking for Dad. That, and the people in the vault tried to kill me."

Sparky tilted his head to the side. "Oh. I wouldn't have expected the tried-to-kill part of that. Most of the people there seemed... tame."

"That's not all... The Overseer killed Jonas..."

"No kidding! I don't believe the master had any idea that would happen. Jonas used to sneak treats out of the diner for me. I liked Jonas. That stupid Overseer, he's always been a big meanie."

Wow... Not the word Oliver would've used. "Uh... Yeah. Anyway, when did you see Dad last?"

"I haven't seen him in a while. He didn't want me to go with him. He told me to run around and do whatever until someone showed up. That someone being, obviously, you or him. I caught your scent, though, and I think that qualifies as someone coming back! Now I get to go with you! Isn't that great?"

"Why would you go with me? You're Dad's cyberdog unit." Oliver asked.

"Hmmm... He must not have explained this to you. Do you really not know? When you were born, the master re-assigned ownership of me to both himself, you and the young mistress. You were just a human-puppy then! I follow one owner at a time, and which one it is will change if I don't know where the other is. And guess what? He's not here, and I don't know where he is. So there you go!"

"I guess that's good news..."

"I think it is! I can help you kill stuff. I even already killed something, see?" The cyberdog gestured with his head to the giant spider.

Amand walked up next. "Sparky! Good to see you."

"Hi there, young mistress!" the cyberdog greeted with a bark.

"So, what do we do if you get hurt?" Amanda asked, kneeling down to scratch Sparky on his side.

"Me, get hurt? Ah, yeah. It does happen. I have a regular canine endoskeleton and a sub-dermal titanium alloy exoskeleton. You can see the exoskeleton in some places. If I get hurt, it's never the exoskeleton, it's always the biological parts. The metal parts could survive the next Holocaust, I think. If I'm hurt, feel free to use a stimpak on me! Oh, but warn me first, okay, young mistress?" Sparky explained, thumping his leg from the scratching.

Malcolm walked up next. "Shit, what is this thing? Is it a dog, a robot, or what?"

"Physically, I'm both. But if you mean my brain? Hmm... Here's the way I understand it. The human brain has three basic parts, and an animal's brain has two. In my case, the third part of my brain is being filled in for by a computer. It's all linked up together. That's why I can talk, why I can make decisions, and best of all... it's why I know to throw up into the toilet instead of in your shoes."

"Are there other cyberdogs like you?" Oliver asked.

"There are some, but they're uncommon around here. They're really hard to get in the Eastern half of the country. Your dad actually came all the way here from the West Coast a long time before you were born, and brought me along with him."

"Wait, dad's from the west coast? Where?" Amanda asked, surprised at this fact herself.

"Not sure. I think Nevada somewhere, or something."

"Have to ask him when we find him. Welcome aboard, Sparky." Oliver said, reaching down and rubbing the cyberdog's ear.

They went back to the pharmacy to investigate it some more, and found three Nuka-Cola Quantums and quite a bit of regular Nuka-Cola in the back, which Oliver insisted they take. He popped open one of the Quantums and took a swig... What happened next is something that Amanda, Clover, Malcolm, and even Sparky agreed they would never discuss, and would do everything in their power to keep Oliver from drinking another Nuka-Cola Quantum ever again.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

On the walk back to Megaton, Oliver noticed Amanda was clutching her arms around herself. He placed his hand on her shoulder, making her jump.

"Oh. Hey, Ollie. What's up?" she asked shakily.

"You okay?"

"I just... I shot people in that grocery store, Ollie. I've never shot anyone before... I didn't kill any of them, but I still shot another person..."

Oliver nodded, understanding. "Different world outside the vault, sis. Gotta do whatever it takes."

Amanda nodded, lowering her head so far down that her glasses slipped down her nose. Do whatever it takes, huh... Well... Next time they fought someone, that would be her mantra.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

She spoke too soon. The group heard gunfire as they were nearing Megaton by nightfall. It seemed a whole gang of raiders was gathering around the entrance to Megaton, with Lucas Simms, Jericho, Deputy Weld, Deputy Steel, and Stockholm, the five-man town militia, standing outside shooting them down from the cover of the stalls set up in front of Megaton's entrance.

Amanda felt a pit grow in her stomach. Oh no... Not now. She wasn't ready to take a human life by her own hand yet. She turned to seek council from Oliver, but the boy had drawn his katana and was dashing into the fray faster than she could even call after him. She watched as he weavened in-between raiders, cutting them down with measured and precise cuts from his sword. Wow, did he really pick up bushido that fast from his kata manual? He always was a swift learner with natural comprehension and retention skills.

Sparky had also rushed in, and began tackling raiders and tearing them open with his jaws. Malcolm had taken cover behind a rock and began taking out raiders with his hunting rifle, while Clover and ran in closer so the enemies would be in range of he sawed-off shotgun and Chinese saber. Amanda herself readied her assault rifle, freshly repaired and with several magazines in her pocket. She could do this... she could do this.

"I'll do whatever it takes..." She said to herself.

Taking a deep breath, Amanda ran in ducking down low and firing at a raider. A bullet hit him in the arm, causing him to turn and run towards her with his wooden board with the nails sticking out of it. The girl jumped seeing the hulking man charging for her roaring like rampaging brahmin. Her hands shaking, she fired off a full magazine at him, but only managed to graze several parts of him. He must've been high on Psycho to be able to ignore his wounds like this. Amanda dove for a boulder, pulling a magazine from her pocket and reloading her assault rifle with shaking hands.

"I'll do whatever it takes..." she told herself again.

Leaning up over the rock, the girl rested her assault rifle on top of it, aiming at the charging raider.

"I'll do whatever it takes..." she repeated to herself...

Aiming at the man's unprotected head, she took a deep breath.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

She pulled the trigger. Upon seeing the blood spray from the man's head from the wound she caused, Amanda leaned to the side and promptly emptied her stomach contents into the dirt.

Standing up, woozy and still shaking, she ran into the fray, firing with wild abandon.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

A raider was sneaking up on Jericho, who's own assault rifle, which was in poor condition, had jammed rather catastrophically.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

Charging in, Amanda smashed the butt of her rifle into the offending raider's head, sending him to the ground.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

She proceeded to beat the downed raider senseless with the butt of her gun, then fired the entire rest of her clip into his torso.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

Her mantra was barely comprehensible now, Jericho watching in awe at what the 'pampered vault brat' had brutally done.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

She turned to the remaining raiders, of which there were only three left.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

Her glasses were horribly crooked on the bridge of her nose, her ebony locks were tussled, and the left strap of her tank top had fallen off her shoulder.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

The raiders hesitated. This girl had clearly gone off the deep end.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

With shaking hands, she reloaded her assault rifle, and with three well-placed bursts, the raiders were each dead.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

Amand ran forward and proceeded to crush one of the raider's skull with the heel of her boot, then fired needlessly into his corpse.

"I'll do whatever it takes..."

She emptied an entire magazine into his torso, tears streaming from her eyes.

"I'll do whatever it-"

She stopped as she felt a pair of arms wrap around her. She was held in a gentle, yet firm embrace that... just seemed to cause all her rage, all her insanity to... melt away.

"Let it go..." a low, even voice spoke to her from behind.

"But... But I..."

"Let go... Begin again..." It was Oliver's voice.

Amanda choked back a sob. Falling to her knees, she turned around and buried her face into her brother's chest, bawling her eyes out. Oliver gently rubbed her bare back, her tank top having been torn from the wounds and blows she didn't even notice she took until now. It... it hurt... Inside and out...

"Why does it have to be this way, Ollie?" she sobbed into her brother's chest.

Oliver said nothing, just holding her tight and rubbing her back.

"Why does this world have to be so fucked up? I just wish we could go back to the vault!"

"Let go... Begin again..."

Jericho stared at the two vault brats embracing each other, feeling an odd... stirring... in his chest... A stirring he hadn't felt in a long time... Not since... his own family...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Doc Church was expecting someone to be brought in after the raider assault. Not that someone usually was, it was just that he assumed the worst. He just wasn't expecting to see vault doctor kid walk in holding some tall, buxom, raven-haired girl in his arms, covered in light wounds.

"For christ's sake! What happened to her, kid?"

"Raider attack. Need your equipment." Oliver stated calmly. It didn't sound like a request, but it wasn't a demand, either.

"Shit. Just hurry up. I'm busy usin' that equipment on people I actually like."

Oliver set her in a chair and got to work bandaging her wounds. Doc Church couldn't help but watch him. Such small, delicate hands, coupled with the length and width of each of his fingers... He was perfect for medical work, particularly complex surgery. His hands were impossibly steady, too, even with the smallest of instruments. Before the doctor knew it, he was handing Oliver the tools and supplies he requested like some simple nurse, so he had the presence to lead an operating room, as well. Maybe if the world hadn't gone to hell two hundred years ago, this kid would be a medical prodigy who discovered a cure for cancer...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

It seemed the raiders that had attacked Megaton came from the nearby Springvale Elementary School where they had been trying to dig a hole into Vault 101. After clearing out the remaining raiders in the school, Oliver and Amanda found plenty of furniture to stock their house with, including a desk and computer for Oliver to use. They'd need more beds for Clover and Malcolm, but luckily the houses of Springvale provided those. They also found enough supplies in the science lab and nurse's office to turn the back of the second floor into a makeshift infirmary and laboratory. Meanwhile, Amanda found plenty of tools and even a workbench in the shop classrooms of the school, and soon had a workshop set up on the first floor where she could service the group's guns. Clover was quite happy to now have her beloved sawed-off shotgun in optimum working order, while Amanda was able to attach a scope, extended magazine, and custom action to Malcolm's hunting rifle, which the cowboy was quite pleased with. Amanda had some of her own ideas on how to mod her assault rifle, but for now, they needed to return to Moira to report on the Super-Duper Mart and collect their next job.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"So, how's the scavving been? Got the food and medicine from that Super-Duper Mart?" Moira asked from where she was sweeping the floor of the store, while the man she'd hired to protect her store stood leaning against the wall in his usual spot, eyeing them warily. Wow, Moira really did live in her own little world. She didn't seem to even realize that raiders had attacked Megaton.

"Wasn't easy, but got the food and medicine." Oliver explained.

"Really? You did? Hah, you did! Well, alright! Tell me all about it!"

"Raiders taken it over, and was also a guard robot could've proved dangerous without tricking it. Not to mention a giant spider." the boy further explained.

"Whoa! Really? Raiders, and robots, and spiders? Oh my! I guess I wasn't the only one to think about checking those stores. Looks like you gotta be careful looting them. Well, keep what ya got. Just traded for a big food shipment myself. Here, take a bit, my treat. The taste kind of grates after a while."

Moira walked off to the back of the store and returned with a bag filled with a mixture of Pre-War packaged food and uncooked Post-War foods, handing it to Oliver. Well, it looks like they'd be set for food for a long time, what with what they got from the Super-Duper Mart added to this, but what they needed was money.

"Oh, oh, and take this! It's an old food sanitizer. Just carry it with your food and it should automatically make most food and drink, um, more, um... better."

Moira reached into a drawer under her counter and handed Oliver some sort of small device that was... surprisingly heavy, as well as a scrap of paper that seemed to contain instructions for it.

"Thanks." was all Oliver said, placing it in the bag of food Moira had given them. "Let's finish up this last chapter with the landmine research." he suggested.

"Well, landmines are one of the few dangers out there that you can profit from. Disarm one before it blows, and you can sell it for plenty of caps. I've heard stories about a ghost town that's just full of mines. Traders just call the place "Minefield." Sounds like the place for some fieldwork! Get in there, get back, and tell me all about it. And could you bring back a mine for my studies?"

Amanda jumped in. "Heading into a entire minefield sounds pretty dangerous. How will you make it worth our while?"

"What better reward for avoiding explosives than to pay you with explosives? Frag grenades, in this case. I got a pretty good haul of them recently! And if you bring me back something to study, maybe I can make some modifications for you. Nothing like tinkering with a live mine, right?"

"Okay. We'll head into minefield. Wish us luck." Oliver concluded.

"Oh, don't worry. No one ever goes there because they say it's a ghost town. And since ghosts don't exist, you can just focus on the landmines. I hear there's a playground in the middle of town. Reach that point and come back, and I'm sure you'll have some stories to tell!"

"Tell me a bit more about Minefield, though? Said it's a town? Who lives there?" Oliver pressed.

"They say it was a town called Ridgefield, until slavers cleared it out. Now, it's supposedly cursed, and just a deathtrap to visitors. Now, everyone calls the place 'Minefield,' and says it's a ghost town. Superstitious nonsense of course, but that's how people think. You'll be fine."

Amanda swallowed hard.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They left Craterside Supply to regroup.

"Know anything about Minefield, Malcolm?" Oliver asked the man.

"I can tell ya everythin' I know about Minefield."

Oliver and Amanda jumped at the sound of the gruff voice to the right. They turned to see Jericho leaning against the side of Moira's store, to the left of the door.

"Jericho? What are you up to?" Malcolm questioned, crossing his arms.

"This don't concern you, cowboy number two. This is between me and the vault brats."

Amand crossed her arms under her chest. She noted the glance the ex-raider sent down her tank top as her crossed forearms gave her breasts some lift, and it sent a shiver up her spine. "If you need something from us, Jericho, it helps not to call us vault brats."

An outstretched hand from Oliver silenced her. Sometimes, even the young vault doctor's own sister couldn't get over how well he could command those around him without words. "Jericho. Always wondered... doesn't look like you belong here. What's your story?"

That just confused Amanda. Jericho was the one who sought them out, so why was Oliver the one asking him such a random question?

"There ain't much to tell. I used to live out in the wastes. I was a real bastard back then. But I've put all that behind me."

"Used to live out there, huh? That mean you know the wastes pretty well?"

"Kid, I know the wasteland like the back of my fuckin' hand. Been out there my entire life."

"How old are you?"

This question also confused Amanda, and seemed to offend Jericho. "Old enough, kid. Old enough."

"Hard to tell due to all you've been through, like the smoking and alcohol, but would guess... Sixty-five?"

That seemed to hit the nail on the head. Jericho's teeth grit. "So what, vault brat?"

"Back hurting you?"

"Fuck you, vault brat!"

"Used to be a raider, right? Had to stop because you got too old and your back started hurting you?"

"Kid, if you got a point to make, make it now, before I lose what little patience I have."

"Can help you, Jericho. Can help each other."

"The fuck you talkin' about, kid?"

"Doctor, Jericho. Recently brewed some pain medication and made special pads that help ease back pain from age in the chemistry lab in my house. Can supply you with as much as you want... if you help us."

Jericho growled now. "Kid, I don't know who yer shittin', but I'll believe that when I see it."

"Fine. Come to our house. Back pain isn't gone by tomorrow, pay you a thousand caps."

Amanda gasped. What was Oliver thinking? They didn't have a thousand caps! Otherwise they would've paid Moriarty already!

"Hah! Fine kid. Easiest money I ever made."

By morning the next day, Amanda was fixing up Jericho's assault rifle, which she learned was named 'Wanda' and added some fresh new nails to his 'board of education,' as he called it. The ex-raider, who was practically running in place due to his sudden lack of joint pain, agreed to take them to Minefield, though Malcolm couldn't help eyeing the ex-raider wearily. It seemed, through social maneuvering and prodigious medical skills, they had gained yet another companion to their group. Even Amanda had to admit, her own brother surprised her.

Little did they know, they would meet yet another new companion on the way to Minefield, though this one would be more of a pet, named after his own favorite food...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Author's Notes

**1:** Hopefully every true Fallout fan got the reference with the mutated toe.

**2:** I will be incorporating various elements not just from previous Fallout games, but spin-offs and New Vegas as well. So yes, weapon mods from New Vegas are present in the Capital Wasteland.

**3: **Wanda is a unique Assault Rifle that was cut from Fallout 3. I've given it to Jericho, as it seems like a name Jericho would give his assault rifle.

**4: **Yes, Jericho is also using the unique Nail Board, the "Board of Education." I plan to explain why he calls it that next chapter, as Jericho isn't intelligent enough to realize the pun behind it.

**5: **In cause you couldn't tell from the last paragraph of this chapter, yes, I'm keeping Dogmeat's name "Dogmeat," unlike in Wandering Pair where his name is Russ. However, he won't necessarily be a dog. We already have a cyberdog on the team. Another canine would be redundant, right? Hee hee hee...


	4. Chapter 3: Special Delivery

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fallout. Fallout belongs to Bethesda, who purchased the rights from Black Isle. Any plot ideas used from "The Legend of the Wandering Pair from Vault 101" belong to Nave Ninja.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Fallout 3

Ties That Bind

By _Cyberweasel89_

**Chapter 3:** Special Delivery

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Despite his eased joint pain, the group still had to slow down every so often so Jericho could catch is breath. It seemed he was a serious chain smoker, and even as they walked, he would light up with his lighter. Amanda slowed her walk so she could walk next to the ex-raider.

"So, Jericho... Your said your assault rifle is called Wanda, and your nail board is called the Board of Education? Why did you name them that?"

"Huh?" Jericho looked up from where he was fiddling with his lighter, his eyes landing square on Amanda's breasts, or as Jericho often called them, "her oversized tits/funbags/knockers" and many other crude names for the mammary glands. "Oh! Because when I hit sorry fuckers with my nail board, I'm educatin' them the best way I know how."

"Educating them... in what?"

"In the knowledge that they shouldn't've fucked with me."

"And your assault rifle? Why did you name it Wanda?"

"None a your fuckin' business, kid."

Amanda swallowed hard, speeding her walk to stand next to Malcolm, who was between Jericho and Clover, who led the group with Oliver and Sparky.

"So, Malcolm... What do you think of Jericho?"

The cowboy gave her a sideways glance with his one good eye. "He's an ex-raider, which means he knows how to fight, which is nice. He probably doesn't know how to sneak, which might be a problem now and then. Aside from that, he could use a bar of soap shoved in his mouth."

Amanda couldn't help giggling at that. She turned her gaze to the trio at the front of the queue right now. It was nice to have someone else from Vault 101 with them, even if it was just a cyberdog. Granted, it was a talking cyberdog who was essentially like an even littler brother to her. She'd been worried about Sparky the morning James had left, so it was good to see he was alright, though a shame that he didn't know where dad was.

Clover, however... Amanda wasn't sure what her deal was. She didn't have to stay with them, but Oliver kept insisting she could spend as much time with them as she needed until she decided what to do with her newfound freedom. Amanda didn't really get what Oliver was doing, but like many things her younger brother did, he probably had a very good reason for doing it, likely due to knowledge that Amanda just didn't have. That was the thing about Oliver. It was almost like he could... well, read people. When he looked at you, it was like he could see right through you, and immediately know things about you that you didn't even know about yourself. It really made him a good doctor because of that, since he could even tell what was ailing someone even when they didn't want to share it. She... kind of envied her brother for this ability. It was something she wished she had. Sure, she could fix machines and pick any lock, but her brother was clearly destined for great things. Every person he'd met so far since leaving Vault 101 had been touched, most of them re-introduced to an emotion or feeling they thought they'd lost. Though currently they were just doing anything they could to earn a hundred caps for Moriarty's information, she could tell they were doing some serious good in the meantime. That filled her with a warmth that she knew only her brother could give her. She may have been the older sister... but she didn't know what she'd do without her little brother to guide her.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"No furniture detected in current domicile. Please see your nearest showroom for appliances and interior decorations."

"For the last time, we're not even inside, you stupid hunk of junk!"

The group was making a wide berth around the city of Bethesda. According to Jericho, it was a known Raider stronghold, and they'd do well to avoid it for now, at least until later. But as they were passing a Red Rocket gas station just west of the city, they found an elderly scavenger raving at a Mister Handy robot. Amanda couldn't help but be reminded of Andy, and it made her smile.

"Oh, hey there. Do you need something?" the scavenger asked.

"Something wrong with your robot?" Oliver asked. Jericho was about to speak up, but a glare from Amanda silenced him. The ex-raider was about to watch Oliver do what he did best.

"I've been wondering about that for an hour, now." The scavenger sighed. "I think it's stuck in some sort of loop. I tried fixing it, but all those switches and circuits are beyond me."

"It's probably just stuck in a diagnostic loop from a problem in a subroutine somewhere. No sweat."

Everyone, even Oliver, turned to look at Amanda. She... wasn't sure why she said that. Sure, fixing robots wasn't really Oliver's thing. Maybe the Mister Handy reminding her of Andy caused her to lose herself?

"Hey, you really know robots, huh? Great to meet another mechanic! I stumbled across this model a while ago. I just can't seem to fix it."

"I'd be happy to fix it for you, sir." She noticed that look Oliver shot her. Was that... a sense of pride? Was he proud of her?

"Great! And hey, just between us mechanics, try some Mentats before you tackle that robot. They really clear your head." the scavenger reached into the pocket of his large coat, fishing around for something. "I know they're addictive, but hey, that's just the sort of risk professionals like us take, right? Here, I've got a few." Producing an entire tin of Mentats from his pocket, he tossed it to Amanda, who caught it.

"And if you get it working, I have a couple of energy cells you can have."

Well, those would be useful to power Oliver's laser pistol. Grabbing her tool kit from her backpack, she opened a compartment on the Mister Handy's chassis. Yeah, it was identical to Andy's own inner workings. Just a quick rewire of the robot's diagnostic system and it was good as new.

"Okay, I reset the robot's circuitry. He should behave normally now." Amanda explained, putting her tool kit away.

"Thanks! Nice to meet a fellow mechanic out here in the wasteland. Here's your payment."

The scavenger reached into another pocket and handed Amanda two small energy cells.

"Oh, but wait a minute... To be honest, I don't know what I would've done if you hadn't come along. This robot is my protection until we reached Megaton. You didn't even ask for anything in return, so how about as thanks, I sweeten the deal with a hundred caps?"

Amanda's jaw dropped. Sure enough, the scavenger reached into yet another pocket and produced a bag of bottlecaps. He counted out a hundred and handed them to Amanda.

"You should think about getting a robot of your own, to be honest. They make great protection, especially since they can stand watch while you camp out and sleep for the night. I recommend Tinker Joe over at the RobCo factory near Tenpenny Tower. He usually has a robot or two for sale."

Amanda held her tears until the scavenger and his newly-fixed Mister Handy were out of earshot. A hundred caps... They... They had enough to pay Moriarty now!

"Amanda... Proud of you..." Oliver said to his sister.

Amanda wiped the tears from her eyes. "I know! We have enough to find out where Dad is!"

Oliver shook his head, his snow white locks waving back and forth before settling into their usually place in front of his face, parted to show his eyes. "No. That's not why."

That confused Amanda. But before she could ask what her brother meant, he was running ahead, followed by Malcolm, Clover, Jericho, and Sparky.

Amanda pocketed the caps, Mentats, and two energy cells without much though, running after her brother and their companions. She'd have to remember to ask about this later.

Malcolm, however, gazed at Amanda out of the corner of his one good eye, a smile on his face so big he swore he was flexing facial muscles he hadn't flexed in years. He just knew it... She had a bit of her brother in her. Maybe there were, in fact, two last, best hopes for humanity...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They ran into some some wandering raiders soon after, with one of them accompanied by a guard dog. Malcolm helped them cut some meat from its dead body, then they continued north, making a stop by a junkyard everyone called 'the Scrapyard.' There really was very little that hadn't been picked clean, but they heard the sound of gunshots from one corner of the huge junkyard, oddly enough. Running forward, Oliver's only thought was someone could be in danger. They found a person dressed in raider armor running from behind a car, only to be tackled to the ground by a tiny yao guai of all things! The raider screamed as the yao guai cub clawed his back open and tore his neck with its teeth, killing him fast. Then the tiny mutated bear turned its sights on Oliver's group, its eyes glowing in the sunlight.

Oliver stared the creature down. It growled, its jaws still dripping raider blood, but didn't move. Slowly, without breaking the bear's gaze, Oliver removed his laser pistol and katana from his hips, setting them on the ground.

"Oliver, what are you doing? That thing could attack us at any moment!" Amanda whispered to him.

Instead, Oliver pulled off his backpack, removing the plastic baggie with the cuts of dog meat inside it. Not saying anything, he reached it and grabbed a piece, holding it out for the thing. The yao guai's menacing look softly softened. It stopped growling, but its back was still raised, a distinct hump in it. Oliver gently tossed the piece of dog meat forward, landing in front of the bear. It gave it a little sniff, then a lick, before gobbling it up.

"Oliver, are you out of your mind?!" Amanda whispered again.

The yao guai slowly began walking forward as Oliver reached into the bag and held another piece out, one paw going in front of the other and its back slowly lowering. Oliver held out his hand, palm facing up to present the food, and the bear licked the morsel of meat out of his hand. Carefully, Oliver began stroking the yao guai's neck, which it allowed, the tiny monster beginning to wheeze. Then, to Amanda's surprise, it leap onto Load, hugging him.

"What's wrong, little guy? Lost your mommy?" Oliver asked it, stroking its back.

Mommy? Amanda looked at the scene before them. Yes, it seems a scavenger, a female scavenger, had been looking through the scrapyard for salvage when she was jumped by raiders. They killed her, but her pet yao guai had not only survived, but avenged her. It must've been a tough little guy to take down four raiders on its own, but yao guai were largely regarded as the second fiercest predators of the Capital Wasteland, after deathclaws.

"Know how you feel, little guy. Lost my dad." Oliver scratched the beast on the top of the head, the mutated bear wheezing in a high-pitched, youthful manner. Why were smaller versions of things always cuter than the full-size versions, Amanda couldn't help but wonder. And that's when it dawned on Amanda... it was a yao guai cub! A baby!

"Want to come with me, little guy? Dangerous out here for a little cub like you all alone."

The cub flopped down in Oliver's lap, cuddling him happily. Oliver produced another strip of dog meat from his backpack, feeding it to the happy little cub mutant.

"What... the hell... just happened?" Malcolm wondered aloud, his jaw hanging open.

Amanda giggled. "I never knew my brother was so good with animals. Looks like we just adopted a baby bear monster. What should we name him?"

Jericho just groaned. "Is this how it's gonna be from now on? Playing Santa Claus and being an animal friend flower child in merry merry go fuck yourself imagination land?"

Clover sent a glare toward Jericho that... to be honest, scared him shitless.

"Think I'll name him... Dogmeat."

"What? That's a stupid name. Why name him that, Ollie?" Amanda asked, sighing.

"His favorite food, it seems. Dog meat. So... Dogmeat."

"Ugh, fine... If you wanna call him Dogmeat, go ahead."

Reaching into his backpack, Oliver removed a red bandana with black and white patterns on it, tying it around the mutated bear cub's neck. The yao guai wheezed happily.

"I think Dogmeat likes his new scarf!" Sparky chirped.

Amanda couldn't help wondering where her brother got that bandana from...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They finally found Minefield. It seemed to have once been a suburban town, but now was, indeed, covered with mines. It was a simple enough task to disarm the mines and collect one of them for Moira. Jericho claimed he was used to setting up traps when he was a raider, and could just as easily disarm them. This proved to be true, but it seemed they weren't alone in Minefield.

As they walked into town, the sound of gunfire went off around them. Bullets came whizzing by the group.

"Take cover!" Oliver yelled. Oliver, Clover, and Dogmeat ducked behind a car, while Amanda, Jericho, Malcolm, and Sparky hid behind the side of a fairly in-tact house.

"Where is it coming from?" Amanda yelled over the roar of gunfire and the sound of mines exploding. It seemed the sniper was shooting mines to set them off around them.

"Dunno! I didn't hear anything about a fuckin' sniper!" Jericho replied.

Oliver was scouring the horizon over the edge of the car, likely searching for the source of the .308 bullets landing all around them.

"Oliver, Clover, Dogmeat! Get out of there!" Malcolm roared.

A couple of bullets landed at pinpoint spots of the car the three of them hid behind, the derelict vehicle soon catching aflame. The three dove out of the way just as the car exploded, setting off several mines around it.

"Why would a sniper be holed up here? Why does he think we're enemies?" Amanda called to her brother as he hid behind some boulders. But... he was gone! Where... where did he go?

"Clover, where did Oliver go?" Amanda called to the ex-slave. The girl looked around in alarm, as if she hadn't even noticed the boy leave.

An explosion sounded nearby, Amanda turning to see it came from the nearby hill. Her eyes widened when she saw Oliver sneaking up it. What was he doing?!

The sniper, however, caught sight of Oliver, and fired a .308 caliber straight through his shoulder. Oliver grunted in pain, clutching his blood-soaked arm, but that was the least of his worries. Several well-placed shots hit the mines around him, each of them exploding in turn.

"Oliver!" Amanda called out. She was relieved to see Sparky and Dogmeat dragging him out of the smoke. He was burned and his gunshot wound was pretty bad, his vaultsuit pretty heavily torn up. She ran over and pulled his head into her lap, patting his cheek.

"Oliver! C'mon, hang in there!"

The boy grunted in pain, his hazel eyes opening and staring into his sister's.

"Amanda..." Oliver groaned.

"Why did you do that?! That was so reckless! We need to find this sniper so we can kill him before he kills us!"

"No! No... don't kill him..." he exclaimed through gritted teeth.

"What? Why?!"

"Entered Paradise Falls for the first time... Entrance guard gave me a list of people the slavers wanted to see enslaved... One was a man named Arkansas that he claimed had taken out a whole Paradise Falls crew, was now holed up in a place called Minefield. Think... this is Arkansas."

"So? What does that mean?"

"Means... Just scared, and confused. Need to reach out to him. Noticed the hill nearby led up to right behind the ruined building was sniping from. Was... going to talk him down..."

"Why? That's so reckless!"

"You were a slave from Paradise Falls, Amanda... Wouldn't you feel just as scared if you thought the slavers were out to get you?"

That gave Amanda pause. It was true... She was, indeed, a slave for a time... And she would certainly feel terrified and untrusting if she knew she was a prime target for the slavers.

"Okay. Stay here, Ollie. I'll do this."

"You'll what?"

"I'll talk to Arkansas. I'll talk him down."

"But, sis..." the boy groaned.

"No, stay here. I might not have your silver tongue, but... I'll think of something when the time comes."

"When the time comes? Think of something?"

"Yeah. I'll burn that bridge when I get to it."

Oliver smiled as he watched his sister run up the hill. Heh, it was a pretty big risk he took, running right into Arkansas's range like that. He was in a lot of pain, but... it was worth it. His sister needed to realize that she had the drive to do good just like he did, just like Dad did. She just needed a little push, is all. Groaning, Oliver closed his eyes and rested, feeling exhausted and in quite a lot of pain.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They came for him. They finally came for him. Back when he was just a boy, slavers raided Ridgefield, getting everyone except for him. Ever since then, he'd turned Ridgefield into a Minefield, and taken up the art of the sniper. Now he was an old man, and he'd rather die then let the slavers take him. This group, though a bit ragtag-looking, were clearly slavers. One of them was even dressed like a raider! The one dressed as a Regulator was clearly trying to trick him, he was sure of it. And the kid in the vaultsuit? Everyone knew all the vaults around here were either closed up or dead and derelict. It was easy enough to shoot the cars to make them explode, but this group was pretty crafty. He finally managed to take down one of them though, but then... the girl... The tall, buxom, bespectacled, raven-haired one... Where was she?

"Hello."

The soft greeting from behind him was such a surprise that Arkansas managed to drop his sniper rifle. He whirled around to see the girl standing there. She set her assault rifle on the floor of the ruined building, her arms in the air.

"I'm not here to hurt you."

That accent... How strange. Was that Australian? Arkansas wanted to reach for his sniper rifle, but he didn't see where it landed, and he certainly couldn't take his eyes off this girl in case she tried anything. For all he knew, she could take him down with just her bare hands. Those slavers may rely mostly on guns, but he knew they came in all sorts.

"We're not here to hurt you. We're just simple travellers. I promise." she said, stepping closer to him.

Arkansas narrowed his eyes, suspicious of this girl. Her words... they sounded sincere... But she could just be an expert liar.

Arkansas chanced a glance around, but it seemed his sniper rifle had fallen to the rubble below. But as he glanced back at the girl, she had lunged for him, the elderly sniper bracing for his capture or death only to find a pair of strong, warm arms wrapped around him.

"It's okay... You don't need to live in fear anymore..."

Arkansas was speechless.

"Just... Let go... Begin again..."

It was... so warm... So soft... He felt himself... comforted...

A single tear fell from the sniper's eye.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Amanda made her way back to the entrance to Minefield to where Malcolm, Clover, Jericho, Sparky, and Dogmeat were waiting.

"What happened?" the cowboy asked.

"I... talked him down. He said he was heading to a place called the Temple of the Union to the east."

"Shit, you talked that maniac down?" Malcolm exclaimed, incredulous.

"Fuck, ya shoulda just killed the bastard, ya soft vault brat!" A glare from Clover silenced the ex-raider before he could continue.

"Where's Ollie, though?" Amanda wondered, looking about.

"Over here."

She looked to see that... Oliver was completely fine? He wasn't burned at all, and he certainly didn't have a bullet wound in his shoulder. His vaultsuit was a little torn up, but he wasn't hurt at all.

"Ollie? What happened? You're okay!"

The boy looked down at himself, seeming confused at his own lack of wounds.

"Huh. Guess I wasn't as injured as I thought."

Amanda... decided to accept that. For all she knew, he could've just applied some stimpaks to himself, though it was odd he didn't remember doing it...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"How are those hot little potatoes?" Moira asked from where she was taking stock of her inventory.

"Got through Minefield alive. Even brought you a present." Oliver told her, handing her the deactivated mine they retrieved.

"My very own land mine! Aw, just what I've always wanted!" Moira exclaimed, taking the explosive from the vault doctor. "Well, always since I sent you out on this, anyway. Now, tell me all about it. What was it like going through there? What's it like disarming a landmine?"

"Whole town was a trap. Even found a sniper, waiting for us." Oliver explained.

"Not quite as much of a ghost town as they say, is it? Good work staying calm and collected under pressure. It'll be a great example for the book! I know you may not want to see anymore explosives for a while, but obviously you know your way around them. Have a couple rainy day toys of mine." She walked off to the back room and returned with five fragmentation grenades, which she handed to Amanda.

"And looking at this landmine, it gives me an idea. It's a terrible device that does terrible things, of course. But... it's easy to make your own, too!" She returned to the back and came back with a sheet of paper that seemed to contain schematics for crafting a homemade mine out of bottle caps and a lunchbox. Amanda was quite interested in this.

"First chapter done, right?" Oliver asked.

"Yup, you've done a great job! I just need to add in the section on how to cook rat, and this chapter's done! Here, for your services, I've saved up quite a few stimpaks! Of course, you may need them. We've still got two more chapters to go!" Reaching under her counter, Amanda handed Oliver five stimpaks, which he pocketed in the first aid kit he kept in his backpack. He also had a doctor's bag in there. Amanda herself kept a tool kit, electronic lockpick mark II, and a full set of locksmithing tools in hers. "How about ya come back tomorrow? I'll have the next chapter's tasks ready for you!" Moira told them.

"Gotcha. Come back tomorrow."

"Oh! But take this! I finished armoring your vaultsuit!"

Moira reached behind the counter and handed Oliver a bundle of blue leather and metal. Heading to Moira's back room, he slipped into it, walking out in his armored Vault 101 jumpsuit. Amanda gave him a thumbs up.

"Thanks, Moira." Oliver told her calmly.

"No problem, sweetie!"

Merely giving Moira a nod, Oliver and company returned to their house to regroup. It was time to pay Moriarty a visit.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Oliver and Amanda walked into Moriarty's Saloon to find Moriarty beating gob with the but of his pistol. He was about to give him another whack, but his wrist was gripped firmly by Oliver.

"Stop that. Now." he stated calmly, yet there was a coldness to his voice.

The saloon owner turned around, smiling.

"Ah, there ya are. Got me three hundred caps yet?"

"What?! You said it was one hundred!" Amanda exclaimed, pushing her way between Moriarty and Oliver.

"I did. And you declined. So it's three hundred caps, now. It's called economics, kid. I have what you want, you have what I want. Simple as that."

Amanda clenched her fists, ready to slug Moriarty with everything she had learned from her copy of Pugilism Illustrated, but a hand on her shoulder from her brother managed to calm her down, if only a little.

"We'll be back." Oliver stated calmly.

"So you've said, boyo." The saloon owner said with a chuckle.

As they were leaving the saloon, a blonde girl sitting by the door waved to get their attention.

"Hi there. Lucy West. You must be the vault kids, Amanda and Oliver."

"Nice to meet you, Lucy. Need something?" Oliver asked.

"Yes, actually. I'm looking for someone to make a delivery. Interested?"

"Need some details before I can decide."

"Hey, you're pretty smart for a wastelander! I need you to deliver a message to my family. They live in a small settlement northwest of here. If you bring it, I'm sure my dad will pay you. I'll tell you more if you agree. Please, I could really use your help."

"A job usually means we get paid." Amanda butt in. Oliver shot her a look.

"Actually, I don't have any caps with me. I used everything I had buying a shack in this town. But if you'd be nice enough to help me, I'm sure my father would pay you something for all the trip. What do you say?"

"Sure, why not?"

"Great! I'd like you to deliver this message to my family in the Arefu settlement. I haven't heard from them in months, and I'm worried. As soon as you get there, talk to Davis West. He'll be glad to pay you for the trip." Lucy explained, handing them a sealed envelope. Oliver pocketed it safely in his backpack.

"Can you give me some information about Arefu?" he asked.

"Sure, be glad to since you're doing me a big favor and all."

"Where is Arefu?"

"Arefu is northwest of Megaton, on an old overpass over the Potomac. If you follow what's left of the river, you can't miss it."

"Who else lives in Arefu?"

"Well, let's see. There's Evan King. He's like the sheriff of the town or whatever. Then there's my family, the Ewer family, and a lady who lives alone named Karen Schenzy. Plenty of other people and families living there, though."

"Suspect your family is in danger?"

"No... not really. Maybe my letters just aren't arriving. Whatever you can do to get it there would sure be appreciated."

"Anything dangerous around there I should know about?"

"What, apart from the Wasteland critters, Slaver parties, Raider hit squads, and occasional landmine? Eheh! No, it's completely safe." She explained, dripping with sarcasm. "If this was easy, I'd go myself, you know."

"Gotcha. Head out tomorrow." Oliver explained.

"Thanks again for doing this for me. It means a lot."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They headed out the next day, following what was left of the Potomac to an overpass that had been converted into a town. It seemed it was named for the nearby sign, which had previously said 'CAREFUL' but had faded over the past two hundred years to just say 'AREFU.' It was as they were going up the ramp of the overpass that a grenade exploded right in front of them. Clover jumped with surprise, clinging onto Jericho's arm, much to the ex-raider's annoyance.

"Hang on, you're not one of them! I nearly blasted you in two! Get over here before they spot you!" an elderly man called from behind a road blockage he was using as cover.

Oliver led the group further up the ramp to where several ramshackle houses had been built out of metal sheets.

"Name's Evan King, town sheriff. Now what the hell are you doin' all the way out here?" the elderly man asked. He was wearing a cap with goggles and a thick jacket with bandoleers crossed over the shoulders, an assault rifle on his back.

"Oliver Carpenter. Amanda Carpenter, Malcolm, Jericho, Clover, Sparky, Dogmeat." The boy gestured to each of them. "Have a message for the West family."

"That's great, but I got bigger problems than being the town post office right now. The shit's about to hit the fan in this cesspool, and I don't think I can stop them!"

"What kind of trouble?" Oliver questioned, quirking an eyebrow. Amanda noted he was oddly calm for having just almost been hit with a grenade, but then again, Oliver was almost always oddly calm.

"Well at first they do typical gang bullshit. You know, break stuff and make lots of noise, but they always kept their distance. But this last time they went too far! They killed all of our brahmin! I mean that's our life blood out here!"

"What has you so spooked?" Oliver pressed.

Even King looked reluctant to speak, but then his shoulders sagged and he sighed. "Ugh... Look. You can call me crazy if you want, but there is something odd about those creeps... I mean, they got the guns and they got the muscle. Why don't they just bust down our doors and take us out already? We're really in a bad way, and could use some help."

Oliver raised his hand to stop him. "Say no more. Glad to help. What do you need?"

The man seemed surprised. Amanda just smiled. Oliver was always one to lend a hand. "Well, I don't want to take my eyes off the ramp here. There's no telling when the Family will return. Can you do me a favor and check on the other people's houses here? You know, make sure they're doing okay? Speak with Davis West, Karen Schenzy, and Ken Ewers."

"Tell me more about what's been going on around here first, though?"

"Well, there used to be more families living here. Most of them have dismantled their shacks and moved on to greener pastures. Those that are still living here are keeping themselves indoors thanks to the Family."

"Gotcha. Be right back."

"Just watch yourself. I've got an itchy trigger finger."

Oliver turned to his sister and companions.

"Jericho, Clover, check the Ewers residence. Malcolm, Sparky, check the Schenzy residence. Amanda, Dogmeat, and I'll check the West residence so we can deliver the letter." Oliver instructed everyone.

They all nodded, even Jericho. The ex-raider himself was surprised by how well the vault brat could command a group like that. It wasn't an order, nor was it particularly forceful of a request, but Jericho still felt compelled to follow this kid to Hell and back. Malcolm and Clover felt the same way.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Jericho and Clover walked up to the Ewers's shack. The ex-raider jimmied the doorknob, finding it locked, so he pounded his fist on the door.

"Hello? Is this the mailman? Oh, I do hope my fall catalog has arrived!" a female voice called from inside.

"Sure, yeah. I got your fall catalog." Jericho called inside. Clover shot him a glare.

"Um, no, ma'am. Evan King sent us." the ex-slave corrected.

"Oh! Evan! He's such a gentleman! Please, do come inside! Let me unlock the door for you." the female voice said from inside.

The sound of mechanical clicks sounded from the door, Jericho and Clover stepping inside to be greeted by a man instead.

"What the hell are you doing in here? Get the fuck out!"

"Calm down, asshole, before I put a fuckin' hole in your chest." Jericho growled. Clover shoved him aside before he started something.

"Um... No, sir. Your wife let us in. Something about a fall catalog?"

"Oh, for the love of... Look, she's dumber than a bag of hammers, okay? If you want to talk to anyone, you need to talk to me. So what the fuck do you want?"

Clover winced at his hostile disposition. "E-Evan King told us to check on you, sir. Is everything okay?"

"We're great. Just peachy. I love sitting in my house with my thumb up my ass. Tell Mr. King that sitting here all day isn't going to make us any safer. We need to take action!"

Clover winced again. "Uh... C-Can you tell us what's been going on around here?"

"Everyone is keeping themselves safe from the Family. If I was you, I'd do the same."

That was a little less hostile. Clover sighed in relief. "Can you tell us about the Family, sir?"

"They're lowlife scum who decided to use Arefu as their own personal amusement park. Oh, they're a fun bunch. I'd take a shot at them if I could, but judging from what they did to the brahmin, I wouldn't live long to tell about it."

"Um... Thank you, sir. M-Mister Jericho, let's go." She turned to see Jericho talking to Ken's wife, Brailee.

"You must be exhausted from all that walking in this horrible heat! Oh, and hungry, too! Sit, please! Brailee Ewers is the name. Don't mind my husband Kenneth. He woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning!" She pushed Jericho into a chair at the table in the center of the shack.

"The hell?" Jericho muttered. "Something wrong, lady?"

"Oh my, I don't know. Mrs. West is probably whipping up a batch of her famous cookies, and all the kids are playing in the yards! It's so nice outside! The grass looks lovely this time of year."

"Wow, are you batshit insane, or what?"

"Well now, there's no cause for name calling. How rude! I have a pie cooling on the window sill I must attend to. Good day!"

Clover promptly grabbed Jericho by the arm and dragged him back outside.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Malcolm and Sparky stepped up to the second house from the entrace to town, the cowboy knocking lightly on the door.

"Yes? Who is it?"

"Even King sent me. Can we come in?" he asked.

"Oh, he did? Well it's about damn time he did something. Come on in, I'll unlock the door."

The sound of locking mechanisms was heard, and Malcolm entered with the cyberdog in tow.

"It's nice to see a friendly new face around here. It's been a long time." the woman inside greeted the cowboy. "The name's Karen Schenzy."

"Malcolm." he introduced himself, holding his hand out for her to shake. She obliged.

"I'm Sparky!" the cyberdog announced with a bark, which made Karen jump at it's volume.

"Even King asked me to check on ya. Everythin' okay?" Malcolm asked.

"Scared out of my mind! I'm glad he's checking on us, but until someone nips the problem in the bud, we may as well stay inside forever."

"What's been goin' on around here, little lady?" the cowboy pressed.

"We're scared shitless! Evan King's got everyone so worked up about the Family, no one wants to set foot outside! That asshole runs the show, but does he really do anything about our problem? No."

"Oo! Ooo! Tell us about the Family! Please!" Sparky chirped, sitting down and panting, his tail waggging back and forth.

"All they do is terrorize us. They taunt us to open our doors, throw bottles at our houses, and scream at us. If I knew King had my back, I'd step outside and show them just how I feel about their visits... Especially after this last attack."

"Thanks, ma'am. We'll be goin'." Malcolm tipped his hat to her.

"Fine. Go. Just like everyone else."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Oliver, Amanda, and Dogmeat found the West family household unlocked, and stepped inside to the stench of death. An adult man and adult woman lay sprawled dead in the house. Oliver even checked their pulses. They were long gone.

"Ugh! What happened here?" Amanda exclaimed. She noticed Oliver examining the bodies. If anyone could piece this together, it would be him, with his medical knowledge.

"What happened, little brother?" Amanda asked him.

"Bodies of the Wests have bite marks on the neck area, go to the bone. Lack of bloodstains on the sheets is strange... Bite or wound of that depth should've caused massive bleeding. Bite marks on the neck appear to be from a human or humans with sharpened incisors or canines."

Amanda shuddered. "You don't think..."

Dogmeat started growling and making various wheezing bear noises. The siblings looked to see some words written on the wall in blood. It read "THE FAMILY."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"What did they tell you? Everyone okay?" Evan King asked the group after they met up and explained what they found to each other.

"Sorry, but... Wests are dead." Oliver decided to just come out and say it.

"The Family must have gotten to them in the last attack! Sons of bitches! Damn it! If only we had more men, we could stand up to them. I'm sick of them terrorizing this town. Wait a minute... When you searched the West's place, did you find their son Ian's body?"

"No, only found the parents' bodies." Oliver explained.

"This has to be the work of the Family! I've caught that weirdo leader of theirs talking to Ian down by the river! Look, I know I've asked a lot of you already, but you have to find that kid... he deserves better than all this."

"Don't worry, Evan. We'll figure out what happened to the Wests." Oliver assured him.

"Thanks, kid. You're all right.

"Where do you think we can find the Family?"

"I think they live somewhere east or northeast of here. Problem is, they always travel in the dark, so I can't see exactly where they go. There's all kinds of places they could be hiding, like Hamilton's Hideaway, the old Moonbeam Cinema, or Northwest Seneca Metro Station."

"We'll check those, then."

"The next time I see the Family, there's going to be hell to pay!"

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They stopped back by Megaton to regroup and resupply, and to tell Lucy the news.

"Lucy, have some bad news... Parents are... dead..." Oliver stated grimly.

"Wh-What?! No!" She gasped. "Oh my god... I should never have left... I knew it..." A small sob emitted from her throat. "Now they're all dead... W-Wait a second... You said my parents were dead? What about my little brother Ian?"

"No sign of him. Sure he's alive." Oliver told her confidently. Amanda had her doubts about that, but she was sure Oliver had his reasons for telling Lucy that.

"You must find him! Please! He's all I have left in this world now! I just gotta know if he's alive or dead! It can't just end this way!"

"Alright, Lucy. Calm down. We'll find Ian." the boy assured her.

"I'm sorry... You don't even know me, and you've already helped this much... I'm not stupid. I know he's probably dead..." She sighed. "I just need to know for sure."

"Sure he's alive, Lucy. Leave it to us."

"Please, do what you can to find my brother."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They stopped by the Moonbeam Outdoor Cinema first, and found some sort of... hulking yellowish green things lurking about an old truck.

"What are those?" Oliver asked.

"Super mutants, kid. Don't try to talk to 'em. They're not very intelligent. They'll either kill ya, eat ya, or drag ya off alive to God knows where."

Malcolm looked, but Oliver was gone.

"Hey."

The super mutant turned around, holding a nail board.

"Sup?" the boy asked.

"Game's over!" It swung the board at Oliver, hitting him in the head and sending him tumbling across the dirt and into a rock.

"Ollie!" Amanda called. She brandished her assault rifle, newly modified. She had removed the stock of the assault rifle, added a scope, and added a silencer. She called it... the Perforator. She immediately fired at the super mutant's head, and along with some supportive fire from Malcolm, took it down. But another one emerged from the nearby truck, brandishing a minigun. It fired a barrage of 5mm rounds at them, letting loose a deep battle cry. Sparky and Dogmeat rushed in, weaving in and out of the super mutant's fire while Amanda, Malcolm, Jericho, and Clover fired on it all at once.

"Go down!"

"Someone wants to cash in their chips early!"

"Die! Die! Fuckin' die!"

"Oliver wants this one's head!"

Eventually, the super mutant fell, torn to pieces by the barrage of bullets and buckshot.

Amanda ran to Oliver to tend to him, but the boy sat up, perfectly fine.

"Oliver? But I saw that super mutant hit you in the head! You're not even bleeding!"

"Guess he didn't hit me that hard." Oliver shrugged.

Amanda just sighed.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They checked Hamilton's Hideway, but found nothing except raiders, radroaches, radscorpions, and a locked gate that even Amanda couldn't pick the lock on. They next checked Northwest Seneca Metro Station, finding mole rats in an area near the entrace, but the second they walked up to a door further in, it opened, the group coming face-to-face with a ghoul wearing eyeglasses, a bloody, dirty T-shirt, and cargo pants.

"You're not... not here to... try and steal my secrets, are you?" he asked.

Oliver tilted his head to the side a little.

"Steal your secrets? No."

"Good. I was afraid I was going to have to abandon my lab here. That would mean starting all over again. It's not easy trying to make Ultrajet, you know!"

"Ultrajet? That some sorta super chem?" Malcolm asked.

"I suppose you could say that. Ultrajet is nearly double the potency of regular Jet. Perfect for ghouls. Jet barely affects us, you see. Only trouble is, it's difficult to gather the ingredients together. Say, you might be able to help me with that!"

"Sure. What do you need?"

"It takes three things to make Ultrajet. Jet, Abraxo Cleaner, and Sugar Bombs. I distill them down to their base contents and add that to the formular then, presto... Ultrajet. For every box of Abraxo cleaner, box of Sugar Bombs, or inhaler of Jet you bring me, I'll pay you fifteen caps. So... you in?"

Oliver thought about it a moment. "In. Oliver Carpenter. You?"

"Murphy. The guy over there is Barret. He's my assistant and my backup, in case things get rough. I wouldn't mess with him if I were you."

"Gotcha."

"Now get going. I have a ton of preparation to do."

"Hang on. Ever heard of the Family?"

"Sure. I stay away from them and they don't bother me. It's a good relationship. They live somewhere East of here. If you think you're feeling foolish, the manhole in my closet has an underground tunnel leading deeper into the metro station to their place."

"Gotcha. Thanks, Murphy."

"Yup. Do watcha gotta do."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

They made their way through an underground tunnel to some metro tunnels, Jericho disarmed several traps along the way. They eventually came to the end of a tunnel, where a man in a bandana and combat armor greeted them with a rifle.

"Whoa, whoa. Slow down there. This area's off limits to everyone but the Family. Where the hell do you think you're going?" he asked.

"Hang on. Have a letter to Ian West from his sister."

"Oh, the new kid? Yeah, Vance said we should be expecting someone soon. You can head on in, but I would speak to Vance first if I was you. You can find him on the mezzanine overlooking the common area."

"What is this place?"

"This lovely hole in the ground is Meresti, the headquarters of... the Family."

"Tell me about the Family."

"We are a badass gang and we don't take shit from nobody. We also don't like nosy assholes who creep around askin' too many stupid questions."

"Gotcha. We'll head on in, now."

"Just remember, I got my eyes on you. We all do."

They walked past the guard, heading around a corner and into another metro tunnel. It opened into a massive metro station, with the eyes of about a fifty or so people turning directly to them as they walked in, all chatter abruptly silencing. These people... something was off about them. Did they... have enlarged, sharp canines and incisers?

"Welcome to Meresti, humans." A smooth voice called from above.

The group looked up to see a man in an overcoat standing atop the mezzanine, smoking a cigarette and wearing a motorcycle gastank on his bag and a strange makeshift sword at his hip that seemed to be attached to the tank.

"Welcome to our home. My people call me Vance. I lead this group of weary travelers and outcasts who need a home. And to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"

"Place's... different... from other settlements..." Oliver mused, gazing around at all the eyes on him. Amanda felt nervous under their gaze, though she noticed Clover was terrified, hiding behind Malcolm.

"What you see before you is the last bastion of hope for the downtrodden and misunderstood. It is a sanctuary for the oppressed and a beacon of faith for the tyrranized. We are the remnants of society, cast aside like the clean-picked bones of a hunter's feast. I led my flock beneath the sun-baked sands of the wasteland to keep them safe and teach them my ways. Men of science would call us cannibals, eaters of human flesh. Society labels us as monsters, demons, and the unclean."

Oliver only quirked an eyebrow at the man. Amanda, however, felt something rising up in her chest... her heart was beating faster and faster. Could it be? Could it really be?

"Humans call for our extermination or reform." Vance continued. "Reforming implies something is wrong with us and needs to be eliminated. I think of my teachings as more of an improvement, a way to transcend our cannibalistic nature."

"Accept that you're no longer cannibals... What do I call you?" Oliver asked, rubbing his chin in thought. Amanda felt her excitement rising.

Vance smiled. "Your open mindedness is very rare for a human. I find that fascinating. Allow me to bolster your insight with a lesson in objectivity. I say we are no longer cannibal, only consuming the blood of our prey. What would that make us in your eyes?"

Oliver just shrugged. Amanda wanted to blurt it out, but she found her mouth wouldn't move. She was almost bouncing now.

"In ceremony, the members of the Family must speak one of the laws... Is it theirs to remember and enforce. Perhaps from these laws you can discover what we are."

"The First Law... Feast not on the flesh... Consume only the blood... This is our strength." one of the people from the crowd called out.

"We do not eat the flesh of those we kill for food. We will only drink of their blood and leave the body intact. The consumption of flesh is filthy and unclean. This action is what causes the humans to treat us like animals. We are not animals, we are the Family." Vance explained.

"The Second Law... Bear not the child. Welcome only the exile. This is our fate..." another shouted out.

"Because we carry the stain of our past in our bodies, we can never let it pass to our offspring, who would in turn carry out our foul actions beginning the cycle anew. The Family must seek the wasteland for others of its kind in order to maintain itself. That is our fate." Vance continued.

"The Third Law. Feed not for pleasure... Partake only to nourish... This is our dignity!"

"We only kill the humans when we are hungry or when we must defend ourselves. We never hunt for sport or pleasure. We do not prey on children for they are not yet tainted by society's view on us. The Family will not tolerate murder."

"The Fourth Law. Seek not the sun's light. Embrace only the shadows. This is our refuge."

"Because we are creatures of the night, we must not set foot in daylight. We move silently across the ground only under the watchful eye of the moon above. At the rising sun, we must seek the embrace of the shadows and never again gaze at its brilliance. The Family seeks the dark as its refuge."

"The Fifth Law! Kill not our kindred! Slay only the enemy! This is our justice!"

"Above all, no member of the Family will ever take the life of another member without the consent of the current leader. Anyone disobeying this action, the most heinous of all our crimes, will be exiled from this place forever. We must not let our own inner demons cause us to fight amonst ourselves. We number only in the few, and we cannot risk extinction."

Vaunce opened his arms, gesturing at all the people gathered around the metro station.

"The Family has become our moniker because that is exactly what we are... Related by blood. Even if all of us look different on the outside, we all have had the same vice infesting our insides. But now, through my teachings, these subjugated people have come together and formed a bond stronger than mere friendship."

"Think I finally understand what you are." Oliver said with confidence.

"Indeed? Tell me what you've learned from the Laws. What do you think we are?"

Amanda shoved Oliver to the side just as he was about to speak. "You're vampires! Oh my gosh, you're all vampires! Just like in 'Vampire's Last Gleaming'! I love that book!"

Oliver cringed as he straightened himself. Amanda and her trashy romance novels... He hoped she didn't bring up 'Ninjas of Love' next...

"Do you think I believe I can turn into a bat and fly away? Of course not. Do I cast my image in a mirror? Absolutely. Now, ask me if I believe these individuals from every corner of the wasteland need me to give them a sense of purpose and identity. I have shown these people the ways of the vampire. I've provided them shelter, organization, and a sense of belonging."

A small smile came to Oliver's lips. "That's... actually really nice. Helped them reign in their cravings and drink blood, not eat flesh. More importantly... have a family. Place where their quirks are tolerated and understood. Noble." Amanda was jumping up and down in excitement.

Vance smiled a mysterious smile. "You are indeed very open minded for a human. It is actually quite refreshing. You are free to roam the common area of our home as our guest."

"Question, though. Attacks on Arefu's brahmin... Why?"

Vance smiled. "I am afraid I cannot account for the actions of every member of my flock. The Arefu incident was indeed an act that was both unncessary and potentially damaging to my work. Some of my flock are interested in actions of revenge on humankind, but I have made it clear that we are not to represent ourselves in a hostile way. Rest assured, the killing of the town's brahmin was not on my order, and the parties responsible for it have been properly disciplined. An incident like that will not happen ever again."

"Fair enough. Now... Looking for Ian West."

"Ah, yes. My newest charge. What would you want with him?"

"Have a leter for him... from his sister." Oliver explained.

"Then a part of his human family still remains? Even more of a reason he needs to remain in isolation. Ian is at a critical moment in his life right now. After all that occured in Arefu, he is scared and confused. It would be ill advised for me to allow you to speak to him while he decides what he wants to do."

"Wait a minute... What happened to him?" Oliver asked.

"Ian's hunger for flesh overwhelmed him... it drove him to kill his parents. Because of my intervention that night he stopped just short of being lost forever to his cravings for flesh."

Oliver quirked an eyebrow. "Ian's a cannibal?"

"I am telling you... he will no longer be labeled as such. He has become one of us... a member of the Family. The hunger that drives us must be kept in check. It is one of the most difficult things to teach. Ian lost control because no one was around to guide him... his own family was alien to him."

Oliver reached into the pocket of his armored vaultsuit, pulling out the sealed envelope and holding it up for Vance to see. "This letter... all Ian has left of his old life... Please... Allow me to give it to him."

Amanda herself was surprised with the emotion in Oliver's voice. It wasn't as much as most people showed, but it was more than his usual mellow, calm tone showed. Even Vance seemed a little stunned. The crowd around the Metro station immediately went aflutter with words shared among the Family, but Vance raised his hands to silence them.

"Your words impress me, human. Perhaps I misjudged you when you first walked in. If you wish to speak to Ian, you are free to do so. I will have my wife Holly escort you to the area in which he is meditating and unlock it for you."

A woman with short, shaggy silver hair walked down the escalator of the mezzanine, gesturing for Oliver and his group to follow her.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Holly, Vance's wife."

"Oliver Carpenter."

"Amanda Carpenter."

"Malcolm, little lady."

"Um... I'm Clover."

"Jericho to you."

"Sparky!" the cyberdog said with a bark.

"The yao guai cub is dogmeat."

Holly turned around to face them as she led them down a hall on the second level. "A yao guai cub? My, you certainly are a ragtag group. But I guess the same can be said for the Family."

She unlocked the door to a side room down a tunnel using a terminal, Oliver walked in, but instructing the others to stay outside.

"Huh? Where did you come from? What do you want?" A 15-year-old boy asked from inside.

"Been looking for you." Oliver said calmly.

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I'm sure Evan King is pretty pissed right about now. I bet he has the entire town out looking for me. He's worse than my parents."

"Sorry, Ian... Parents are dead."

"You think I don't know that? You think I don't know what I did?!" Ian questioned rhetorically, his voice rising.

"Know what you did. Vance told me everything."

"Then you must think I'm... some kind of a monster."

"Look, Ian. Know loss, too. Know it hurts."

"There's something inside me... something completely messed up! I'm a mutant! A fucking freak! The only person I was ever able to talk to was my sister Lucy, and she's gone! No one gives a shit about me except Vance and the Family! Can't you understand that?!"

"Actually... Can."

"Wait, what?"

"Can understand that. Have a problem, Ian. Only Family can improve you, turn you from a cannibal to a vampire. Why... think you should stay with them. Belong here with the Family, Ian."

Ian seemed shocked. "R-Really? Well... Thank you for understanding. This place is all I've got, and I don't wanna lose it. Would you speak to Vance for me? I still need some time alone before I'm ready to talk to anyone else."

"Got it. Thanks, Ian."

"But hang on. If you're just convincing me to stay, why did you try so hard to find me?"

Smiling, Oliver said nothing, instead walking out of the room, leaving Ian confused. But when he looked down at the table that Oliver had been leaning against...

An envelope was sitting there...

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Oliver left Ian's room to find Amanda and the rest waiting for him.

"What happened in there?" Amanda asked.

"I convinced him to stay." Oliver stated.

Amanda's jaw dropped. "What? But shouldn't he go home, face his problems?"

"Don't get it, Amanda. No one home for him to return to. Lucy has a new life now, and no one else in Arefu's related to him. Returns to Arefu, just get his cravings for human flesh again and attack someone else in the town. Here, can be improved into a vampire and be in control of his own life."

Amanda sighed. "I hope you know what you're doing, little brother."

Oliver just smiled.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"It appears we have a lot to talk about."

Vance greeted them from the ledge of the mezzanine, smoking a cigarette. He said it without even looking at them.

"Indeed, Vance." Oliver agreed.

Vance turned to face them. "I trust your talk with young Ian went well. I am quite interested in learning the results of your discussion. Did he come to a decision?

"How did you know Ian was trying to decide to stay or leave?" Amanda spoke up.

"My fine friend, that poor soul has been wrestling with the same question every new member of the Family asks themself when they arrive. Do I belong here, or should I depart? All I ask is that they spend the time to reflect before deciding in solitude."

"Before we talk about Ian, still the matter of Arefu to discuss."

"As long as you maintain this level of civility, please proceed."

"Those people're defenseless, and don't really need to kill them to get blood. Vampires can drink any kinda human blood... even from bloodpacks."

"Curious. Many years ago, I survived by drinking from fresh bloodpacks I recovered from hospital ruins. The problem was that these bloodpacks were scarce. What do you propose?"

"Arefu donates their blood, and in exchange, you protect them."

"Oh? And a town of twenty people can feed a Family of fifty?"

"And... Bring you all the bloodpacks we find out there. Already collected quite a few from first aid kits. Doctor, you see. Tend to squirrel medical supplies."

"Agreed. Please, take this proposal to Arefu. Speak with them and then return to me with their decision." Vance handed Oliver a piece of paper with handwritten writing on it, which he seemed to have already had on him. "I thank you for showing me that your kind can be trusted after all. It is a lesson I will not forget. Now, what of young Ian? Tell me his decision."

"Ian's decided to stay with the Family." Oliver told him, pocketing the piece of paper with Vance's proposal on it.

"When you first arrived, I was suspicious of your intentions. I can see now it was an error in judgment. I can assure you Ian will be well cared for and safe with the Family. Please, I want you to take this. Consider it as an apology to you for all the hardships you had to endure finding this place. Goodbye, human. Our time together has been rather... educational." He handed Oliver another piece of paper, which the boy unraveled to find it appeared to be schematics to build some kind of melee weapon. He handed it to Amanda, who seemed quite interested in it.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

"Well, holy shit! You're back! What the hell happened out there?" Evan King seemed genuinely surprised to see them return.

"Done, Evan. Family won't bother Arefu anymore." Oliver stated confidently.

"I don't know how you did it, but goddamn am I glad you walked up that ramp and lent us a hand! What about Ian? Did you find him?"

"Ian's fine. Turns out, he's a member of the Family. Always was meant to be."

Amanda wasn't sure it was a good idea to tell Evan that, but...

"Well, you're just full of surprised today, aren't you? I'm not sure I get that, but I'll take your word for it. Thanks again, kid. Consider yourself welcome back here anytime you're in this part of the wastes!"

"Hang on. Have a proposal for you from Vance, Family's leader." Oliver reached into his jumpsuit pocket and handed Evan the letter. He unfurled it and gave it a read.

"Interesting. It seems they wish to enter into some kind of agreement. I guess it's better than pointing my gun down that ramp all day and hiding inside at night. Let Vance know he's got a deal... we'll do it! I'll speak to the others, I'm sure they'll agree with me."

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The group stopped by Megaton to tell Lucy they had delivered her letter, as well as to pick up the bloodpacks they had collected.

Lucy's face lit up upon seeing them return. "Did you find Ian? Please tell me you found him!" she pleaded.

"Found Ian. He's fine."

"Thank god... Where is he?"

"Meresti Metro Station, living with the Family."

"The... Family?"

"Lucy... Think I better start from the beginning."

Lucy West sported a confused look.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

The group returned to Meresti Trainyard to see the Family at Meresti Metro Station.

"Always a pleasure to receive you in Meresti, humans. Do you have word on Arefu?"

"Arefu's accepted your proposal, Vance." Oliver stated, a small smile on his face.

"Excellent! I knew you would serve as an ambassador for us in good faith. I will dispatch Alan and a few of the others to Arefu immediately to serve as their guardians and honor my end of the agreement. Your efforts surpass those of the average human. In fact, I feel almost like you are a member of our flock. If you ever wish to learn our ways, you have but to ask."

"Hang on. Have some bloodpacks to contribute."

"And yet again, you impress me, human. I can only offer my thanks. My people must get accustomed to using these as a substitute for live prey. May I offer any kind of compensation for your efforts? I must at least give you something in return."

"Thanks is all I need Va-"

Amanda shoved Oliver out of the way. "Teach me the ways of the vampire! Please!"

"To be a vampire is a life commitment. It is not achieved by my words. It is something you earn by your own will and sincere meditation. Sadly, I cannot fully make you one of us, but I _can_ teach you how the life blood of others brings us regenerative powers. Since your body lacks the way to extract blood as we do, you must find alternative sources for your nourishment. Drink deep of the blood, allow not a drop to spill. Feel the warmth as it spreads inside you. You are becoming one with the life force of another. They lend a part of themselves to you. For a brief moment, you are two entities becoming one. Allow the feelings to course through your body as you partake of the blood. Feel it empower you and make you stronger. Once you have done this deed, only then will you know what it is like to be a vampire."

"Wow! Thanks so much, Vance! I feel empowered already!"

Oliver sighed, though he couldn't help but chuckle at Amanda's passion and enthusiasm. "Mind if we see Ian?"

"Not at all. Go right ahead."

They returned to the meditation room to find Ian talking with a girl about his age. Upon seeing Oliver and Amanda enter, the girl blushed and ran off, scampering between the siblings and out the door.

"Oh, uh... Hi, Oliver. Who's this?"

"Hey. Sister, Amanda."

"Hello, Ian." Amanda waved.

"Oh. Cool. I guess you know what it's like to have an older sister, then." Oliver just smiled. "I wanted to thank you one last time for what you've done for me. My brain feels... like less of a mess now. I think I may be seeing clearly for the first time in years. Don't worry about me... I've been through a lot, but I think I'm gonna be okay."

"How're things going, Ian?"

"I've learned a bit more from Vance and I've been allowed around Meresti. I really think you helped me make the right decision. Thanks! Everyone around here is being nice to me despite what happened, so I guess it all turned out well. Thanks!"

"Mind if I asked about your unusual hunger?"

"I suppose not."

"When did you first discover you had the hunger?"

"I was about ten years old and I was playing with Lucy down under the overpass. We loved throwing rocks in the water. We saw some wastelander trying to break open the brahmin pens and steal one of them, so I ran over and told him to stop. He just laughed and pushed me away. When I fell, suddenly my head started to hurt, and my eyes got all blurry. It was almost like I blacked out. Next think I know, Lucy was pulling me off the guy..."

"What'd Lucy say she saw you do to that wastelander?"

"She said I like... changed into another person, that I even glared at her and raised my arms like I was going to kill her. The wastelander took a swing at me with some kind of club... I turned around and jumped on him... I tore his throat open with my teeth. If he wouldn't have done that, Lucy may have been killed, I just dunno."

"Did you ever talk to your parents about it?"

"Lucy said mom and dad would never have understood. She told me to keep what I did a secret, and that she'd try and help me. Thanks to Lucy, she was able to stop that from ever happening again for years. Every time I'd feel the hunger, she'd hold onto me and not let go. After a while the hunger almost seemed to... go away. Until... well..."

"Really believe in vampires?"

"I dunno. I really don't. I mean, I'm not totally dumb. I know they were in stories and all that. But who knows. Maybe Vance is right and vampires were just people like us who learned to control their hunger and drink only blood. I mean, vampires are regarded as feared monsters instead of hunted animals like cannibals. It kinda makes sense."

"I know it's painful, but do you want to talk about what happened in Arefu?" Amanda asked.

"It actually kind of makes me feel better to talk about it. Go ahead."

"Why did you... do what you did to your own parents?" she continued.

"I wish I could answer that. I really do. I don't even remember it happening. When the hunger takes over it's like being pushed aside... like something else is controlling me. I can see what's happening but can't close my eyes. I don't even remember exactly what happened until Vance knocked on the door."

"How did Vance know you were one of them, though?"

"That's the weird thing. He has some kinda crazy sixth sense about it or something. Maybe all of our kind do. As soon as I was with the Family I really felt at home for the first time in my life. It's like all these people are my real brothers and sisters."

"Wow... So hot... Oh, uh! How did you end up leaving Arefu?"

"I don't know how long I sat there on the floor staring at my parents' bodies. Seemed like days. I wanted to feed... to eat their flesh. But it was like a little bit of me was still holding on. Then, out of nowhere, there was shouting outside and a knock at the door. I opened it and it was Vance. He seemed to know exactly how I was feeling inside... He took me under his arm and we left. I never looked back."

"I saw the Family's mark on the wall. What's up with that?"

"Vance told me later that he was basically covering for me and allowing the Family to... to feed at the same time. Since my parents were already dead, they drank their blood and left the mark on the wall. He didn't want Evan to suspect that I had done it. The irony is they were stalking our town to feed anyway. It's almost like Vance knew this would happen..."

"Who was that girl you were talking with, though?"

A slight blush came to Ian's cheeks. "Uh, that was Rose... She's the same age as me and has been with the Family since she was twelve. She says her situation was kind of like mine, only in a small settlement to the north that was wiped out by raiders."

Amanda giggled. "Well, I hope you two have fun together." She grabbed Oliver by the wrist and headed back out of the room, with Ian sending them a "Huh?" out after them.

No sooner had they stepped out of the room were they greeted by Vance.

"Oh, uh... Hi, Vance. What's up?" Amanda asked.

"I was hoping I could discuss a... private matter with you." Oliver only quirked an eyebrow.

"Remember when you learned of our Laws? The Fifth Law says that killing one of our own is our most heinous crime, and is to be punished with exile. Well... I have a bit of a loose end I need tying up that I hoped you would take care of me."

"You mean the Fifth Law was actually broken once before?" Amanda gasped.

"Yes. Years ago, when the Family was just three members including myself, before I had even met Holly or any of the others currently in the Family. It was just me, Bram ... and Jiangshi."


End file.
